Child of Wonderland
by tudor-rose445
Summary: Alice grew up in Wonderland, alongside the boy-King Jack. After meeting Hatter at his tea shop she becomes close friends with him. But at her father's death she learns of Hatter's request: Alice's hand in marriage. Based on Alice of Syfy.
1. Chapter 1

Ooc: In this story, Jack is king, or rather a boy-king at the moment. The Queen of Hearts has been executed and her husband thrown into prison. There is no casino or emotion-tea. Wonderland isn't as deserted and odd shaped as it was, but has kept more of its old fashioned look from the time of the first Alice's visit.

AN: I own nothing. Lewis Carroll owns Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Syfy owns "Alice."

It had been nearly six years ago that he had left his world behind for this strange place of Wonderland. Six years ago that his wife of one year had died leaving him with his day old daughter. It seemed more like yesterday than six years ago.

"Papa!"

The little, brown haired girl that was tugging on his hand stared up at him waiting for him to react to his name. He observed her for a moment before responding. She held so much of her mother in her that it was painful at times to look at her. It was in the color of her hair, her nose, the way she rolled her eyes, as she was doing now. Yet his eyes stared back at him from her face, clearly showing that she held something of him.

"Papa, come look at this doll!" Robert Hamilton followed his daughter's small index finger to where she was pointing. The porcelain doll, clothed in purple silk, rested in the window of a small toy shop. Alice broke away from her father's hand as she hurried over to it. She turned excitedly back to see if he had followed her. But she needn't had worried: wherever she went, her father was not long behind. She was the only thing he had left and because of it held a dear place in his heart.

It had been six years ago when he had been struggling to land a job in the field of Biology. He had been considered for a rather important position at a government run science lab, but had been turned down due to the rival applicant's relation to the head of the lab. He had finally earned a job as a lab assistant in a blood bank, but the money he earned wasn't enough to support both himself and his pregnant wife. Not to mention that student loans were beating down on his back. But then his daughter had been born, followed by the death of his wife due to complications from childbirth. Robert had never had such torn emotions as that day: grateful for his daughter, yet mournful for his wife.

What followed were a few weeks of agony as he tried to pay off his wife's funeral, find someone to care for Alice during the day, and earn enough to keep the electricity going in their small apartment. Then one day an unusual man had come into the blood bank strictly to speak to Robert and had offered him a job. Somehow this man had gotten a hold his resume and knew more about him and many of Robert's friends did.

This man offered his condolences on Carol's death, congratulations on the birth of Alice, and sympathized over his current situation. He had explained that his boss had been looking for a gifted scientist such as himself, and wished to hire him as lead Biologist. Yet the man further confounded him as he spoke of where he was from: a place called Wonderland. Robert had almost kicked the man out there and then, having felt tricked as this man wearing an insignia of a club spoke of some place in a child's book.

Yet the man, who asked simply to be called Ten, provided a stack of documents signed by some unknown council that requested he accept their offer of employment. Knowing that he barely had enough money left to keep food on the table for both himself and Alice for the week, Robert skeptically accepted the job. Now here he was, six years later, raising his daughter in a land he had once thought to only be in a child's book.

He slowly came back from his memories at the yowling of an animal. He glanced down at the kitten resting in the basket which was currently resting on the crook of his daughter's arm. In her excitement Alice had jostled the basket too quickly causing the poor kitten to tumble into the corner of the basket.

"Jellybean, be more careful with Dinah. Would you want to be rolled around in a basket?"

He ruffled the little girl's hair as she giggled.

"Oh, Dinah!" she exclaimed before reaching her small hand into the basket to set the cat back right side up. The kitten forgave her small mistress as she purred into Alice's hand. After seeing that the cat was fine Alice placed her hand back into her father's.

Once a week the pair ventured out into the city to buy that week's necessities. They wanted for little: having their own chambers in the palace and Robert's salary was nearly enough for the two of them.

Already he had a loaf of bread tucked under his free arm. There were only a few more things the pair needed before returning. Already the sun was starting to set, prompting the city's lamp lighters to come out of hiding. Robert paused outside of a butcher's shop before turning to Alice. He knew well enough to bring his daughter in there: the last time he had brought her there she had ran out in tears from seeing the chicken legs and other animal body parts displayed around the shop.

"Wait out here, Alice. I'll only be a moment," he said while readjusting her woolen coat. The little girl had already grown out of her old coat which had prompted him to update her wardrobe a few months ago. The gray coat covered up the knee length, blue dress that she had insisted upon wearing that morning. Finishing the image of a well brought up girl, a pair of white gloves completed her outfit. She absentmindedly nodded as she toyed with a ribbon that she had tied upon the handle of the basket. It was slightly tattered as Dinah had taken to swatting at it to amuse herself.

Dinah perked up her little head from the basket as her eyes alighted on a mouse that had been scurrying down the gutter of the street. To Alice's alarm the kitten leaped from the basket and took off after the small animal. Completely forgetting her father's request to wait for him the girl ran off after her cat calling her name.

All Alice heard was the clacking of her polished shoes smack against the cobblestone street as she ran after her kitten. After a few minutes her pace slowed as she watched the cat get farther and farther away. Tears came to her eyes as she realized that she wouldn't be able to catch her. "Papa will find her," she whispered to herself before turning back around. But then she realized that she wasn't outside of the butcher's shop anymore. She didn't know where she was.

Instantly, tears came to her eyes. Dinah was gone, and now Papa too? She broke into a run, trying to go back the way that she had come. But through her tears she didn't see the man trying to lock the door of his shop. Alice collided into him with a thud before falling back onto the ground. She scraped her knee on the fall, ripping the knee of her stocking to leave a blood mark forming. The man looked down at her in shock before glancing around. Seeing no parent-figure around he extended his hand to the girl to help her up.

"Alright there little one?" he asked while taking in her current state. Alice shook her head as she tried to wipe away her tears with her free hand. "I can't find Papa, or Dinah," she explained before bursting into a fresh wave of tears. The strange man withdrew a clean handkerchief from his pocket and awkwardly handed it to her. Hesitating a moment the girl accepted the small cloth and dabbed at her eyes. Fumbling for the ring of keys that he had momentarily placed in his pocket the man unlocked his shop door. "Your Papa, you say?" he asked before opening the door. "And what is your name?"

She hesitated a moment before answering, "Alice Hamilton, but I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."

The man grinned before taking off his hat and bowing deeply to the little girl, causing her to giggle. For a moment her tears were forgotten. "My name is Hatter. See, we aren't strangers anymore. Now come on inside and I'll clean that scrape for you."

Not being able to doubt his logic, the girl followed him inside the tea shop.

A few minutes later she was settled in front of the fireplace in the corner of the room in front of a tea table with her leg propped up on another chair. The fire crackled nicely which helped calm her. The man, or Hatter as he had told her to call him, returned to her carrying a cup, a rag, and a clean cloth. He set the warm cup before her and then proceeded to kneel down beside her knee.

"What is it?" she asked, peering into the pinkish liquid. It was clearly different than the milk that she normally drank at meals.

"Tea," Hatter answered as he carefully dabbed at her scrape. "I own a tea shop, you see. We are in one of mine; I have three." His talking helped distract her, for had he not, the sight of the blood on the rag might have sent her into tears again.

She grimaced at the name. "Papa drinks tea: I don't like it."

He laughed as he moved to wrap the cloth around her newly cleaned wound. "I think that you will like this one a bit better than your father's tea," he said before knotting the cloth. "Go on, try it."

Alice carefully lifted the cup to her lips before sipping it. Instantly a smile came to her face.

"Strawberries!"

Although the tea held a bit of that bitter taste of her father's tea that she didn't like, the majority of the flavor was strawberries. She sipped happily from it as Hatter watched her. She had said her last name had been Hamilton...wasn't that the name of that scientist? The one who is working on vaccines? Although he wasn't as involved in Wonderland news as he should be, he recalled reading in the paper of the latest vaccine.

"Have you seen Dinah?"

Her voice brought him back from his thoughts.

"Who?"

"Dinah."

He racked his brain for a moment trying to recall anyone named Dinah. "Is that your mother?" he asked, although it was a bit strange for her to be calling her mother by her first name. Alice shook her head as she set down her empty cup.

"No; she is my cat. She ran away from where we were waiting for Papa, and now I can't find her." Tears threatened to spill again as she thought of her cat, but she was quickly distracted by a frantic knocking at the door. Hatter left her for a moment to open it, revealing a man carrying a bag of food and a kitten under each arm.

"Have you seen a little girl?" Robert asked, not bothering to exchange pleasantries. "Brown hair, gray jacket?" Before Hatter had a chance to respond Alice bounded off of her chair and ran to her father.

She collided with his leg, nearly sending the man backwards, and instantly wrapped her arms around his knee. He set down the cat, who proceeded to curl around her legs, and held her close to him. Breathing a sigh of relief he pushed back a stray hair from her face. Alice was the only thing he had left: she was his life. If he hadn't been able to find her he wasn't sure what he would have done.

Finally standing up he regarded the seemingly young looking man before him. But after being in Wonderland for so long, Robert had come to realize that age was different here. Even though this man seemed to be twenty-four, he could have ranged anywhere from a hundred to two hundred. The average person in Wonderland lived well into their five hundreds he had heard.

"Thank you so much for taking care of her," Robert said after making sure that Alice was still close to his side.

Hatter toyed with the edge of his jacket, feeling a little awkward. He was a bachelor that had been living by himself for the past sixty years: children and stressed out fathers were new to him.

"She was no trouble at all, weren't you little miss?" he asked while tipping his hat to her. She blushed and buried her head into her father's pants leg. Robert held onto her hand tightly while shifting his packages.

"Thank you Mr...."

"Hatter, David Hatter."

**

Nearly seven years later, and the father-daughter pair continued to visit David's shop once a week on their outings. And in this way he watched her grow from a shy little girl of six to a blossoming woman of thirteen.


	2. Chapter 2

Ooc: I think I got Alice's first love across alright. It seems sappy, but a thirteen year old falling in love for the first time isn't the most dignified thing. :) Please review.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Lewis Carroll owns Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. Syfy owns "Alice".

At thirteen Alice had become as accustomed to Wonderland as a child that had been born there would have. Her father had never told her about her brief time in his world, or how Wonderland is featured in a chain of popular children's books and movies. For all she knew, she had been born there. Robert thought it best this way, even though he had thought of explaining it to her. He himself had taken a long time to get used to this fantastical world that he had never thought existed. To try to explain it to his daughter, who had only ever experienced Wonderland, might be too upsetting for her. It would be much easier for her to think that she was a native of this place.

Already she was becoming more and more like its inhabitants. There was something about her- Robert couldn't pinpoint it- that was so different from himself and Carol. It might have been the rosiness of her skin, or the glimmer of her eyes, if he was to guess. But that slight difference made her more a child of Wonderland than he would have thought possible: she was becoming one of them. He hadn't noticed it until one of his coworkers had begun to observe Alice on one of her visits to the lab.

The scientist explained that since Alice had come to Wonderland at such a young age, she was beginning to become more like its citizens. It was suggested that it might have been the air, or the food: no one was certain. But since she had come at only a few weeks old she was accepting this new life. It was too late for Robert, who had lived in his own world for too long. But at least his daughter would experience this new world as any other native of Wonderland would, including the extended life span.

Yet despite Alice's change, she was still a teenage girl. A girl that he constantly had to worry about.

Alice, however, thought her father worried too much. There was really little trouble to run into in the palace. Besides the occasional scrapes and bruises she had gotten during her childhood while racing Jack up the trees in the courtyard, no real physical pain had come to her. Even though her father worked in the lab for more hours than she would have liked she had at least Jack to stay with.

Growing up in the palace, the two had spent most of their childhood together. Even though Jack held the title of King he, currently at the age of fifteen, was still unfit to rule. He had complained on numerous accounts how the old Aces stared down at him during council meetings as if he was still a child. Having never had such a title, or the position it came with, Alice could only attempt to soothe him.

"Your eighteenth birthday isn't that far off," she suggested, trying to calm him as he stalked back and forth in front of her. She drummed her fingernails on the stone bench she was sitting on, watching him move back and forth as if at a tennis match. His leather boots made a sharp, resounding sound against the pavement with every harsh step. Any strolling nobility or servants had cleared the courtyard as soon as the pair had come into view after taking one sight of the king's expression. Everyone knew better than to be in the teenage king's path when he was troubled. That was, except for Alice. She, being one of the few people able to calm her best friend, was allowed to sit through his rants.

Finally Jack sat beside her while running his hand through his hair. She carefully picked up his free hand with one of her own, clasping them together. "Just wait until you come into the Council Room the day of your eighteenth birthday. Those old men will be so impressed that they will shout to every corner of Wonderland: "Long live Jack, King of Hearts!". By now she had dropped his hand to spread her own in the air, as if imitating the actions of the Aces. "You'll see."

He laughed lightly before picking up her hand again. "I sometimes think that you should be the one to go there and tell them off," he remarked as he lightly traced her hand with his fingertip. "What would they say if little Alice came running in there and berated them?" He smiled before carefully placing her hand back at her side.

Alice brought her hand back to her lap as she savored the tingling feeling that his skin upon hers had created. She was slowly growing aware of the changes that one faces at a certain age- despite the awkward conversation with her father on what those changes actually were- and quietly noted that she had never felt so warm as she did at this moment than any other time Jack had touched her. It didn't make sense to her once she thought about it.

She had been friends with Jack since before she could remember. Having lived at the palace she nearly always came into contact with him and the two had grown to be best friends over the years. Most of their free time was spent together, and at times she was even brought into his lessons to help him concentrate. Those lessons had included fencing to dancing. Alice considered herself to be the better fencer of the two but she wisely knew not to mention it to the teenage boy, as his ego was in a fragile state at this age. Or so her father said when she had nearly threatened to flaunt the fact to Jack.

But now as she shyly met his eyes, which had been staring into her own, she felt an unfamiliar fluttering in her stomach.

"Alice?"

She jumped at the sound of her name, breaking the moment. Standing up hurriedly she dusted off the skirt of her gown as if in an attempt to hide the fact that she had spent an intimate moment with her best friend.

"Alice?"

Again her father called her, coming from one of the halls leading to the courtyard. Not wanting her father to see the two, both a bit flushed looking, and get the wrong idea she hurriedly moved backward. "Your majesty," she said, sweeping him a careful curtsey which would have belonged at a more formal reception than this one, yet smiling so playfully that it erased the formality of it all together.

Gingerly she placed her fingertips upon her cheeks as she hurried to meet her father. Even with such a slight touch she could feel that they had grown warm from blushing. And in that meeting in the courtyard, she first realized that she was in love with her best friend.

-

She gently stirred the cup before her while staring down at the tea leaves with interest. While the tea leaves themselves were not the cause of her interest they had simply been something that she could stare at while she focused on the day's events. Alice knew that she couldn't talk to her father about what she had felt between herself and Jack. It would be too awkward talking to him about that. And anyway, her father might not like the idea of her adoring the king. Too many courtiers kept mistresses, and although she knew Jack would never make her one, that would be the first conclusion that her father would think of.

What she couldn't understand was how she had never felt this way before of Jack, even though they had spent their childhood together. She guessed that at that time she had been too caught up in other things; childish things. Her mind had been too focused on her dolls and pretending to have tea parties in her bedroom. Even though the king had been a guest at quite a few of those teas, despite his reluctance, she had never felt anything different toward him than she did of any of the other children of the palace that she played with.

But now she felt as if a shade had been lifted from her eyes. It was as if she was seeing the fifteen year old for the first time. How had she never noticed the way his blonde hair fell across his temples, or how his eyes seemed to penetrate her heart? She was shocked from her thoughts as someone sat across from her.

"Troubled m'lady?"

A smile spread onto her face as she recognized Hatter as the man across from her. Although he had enough employees running around the shop she knew that he was still busy overseeing them all. Yet every time she and her father-or in this case just her- came to visit, he made time to talk with them. He folded his arms on the table as he leaned toward her. "Does your father know that you are out and about at this time?"

Her eyes flickered over to the grandfather clock that rested in the corner beside the fireplace and winced. It was nearly seven o'clock and she had left at five. Forgetting to answer Hatter's first question she shook her head. "I left a note for him that I was in the library, but I didn't think that he would be finished in the lab by the time I returned." Alice toyed with a stray strand of her hair as she thought over the lecture she would be given after her father realized that she was not in the palace's library. She wasn't even supposed to be out in the city without him as her guide.

Yet she had needed a place to think and staying in the palace would have given her no peace. How could she think about the source of the sudden upheaval in her life when he was in the same building as her? So she went to the place that was closest in her heart as her home: Hatter's tea shop. The man that had wrapped her scrape and calmed her tears had become a close friend, despite the fact that he looked to be twenty-four. He wasn't troubled by her childish talk at age six and now put up with her at age thirteen.

But Hatter didn't mind her visits at all. On the contrary, he looked forward to them once a week. It interested him to see how the girl had accustomed to Wonderland as if she had been born here, not to mention that she was a sweet little thing. On occasion she brought a box of comfits for him, which were usually eaten by March before he had a chance to open them himself. His eyes flickered from Alice to the mentioned man behind the counter who grinned at him as if knowing exactly what Hatter was thinking of. Grumbling something about inconsiderate friends he moved to stand.

"Close up the shop will you March? I'm going to walk Alice home."

Grinning cheekily at the disgruntled look on March Hare's face at having to stay later than normal Hatter extended his hand to the young woman. She quickly accepted it before buttoning her coat. The gray woolen coat of her childhood had been replaced by a black one, a gift from Jack for her last birthday. It was warmer than any coat she had ever worn before, most likely since it had been made by the king's personal tailors. She hadn't wanted to ask how much it was and was glad that she didn't know. It was clearly more expensive than anything else that she owned.

Opening the door for her Hatter led her out into the deserted streets of the city.

After a few moments of silence she glanced over at him. "Thank you, for walking me home. Papa might not be as upset if he knows that I didn't make the trip into the city completely alone." It might help a little bit, but she wasn't sure if it would do anything to help lessen the punishment she knew would be coming. But it had been for a good purpose that she had left and she was dreading having to tell her father why exactly she had.

"Well, for walking you home, why don't you tell me what exactly was bothering you?" he asked in that playful sort of way that characterized him to her. He wasn't boring or looked down upon her despite her young age and she was always grateful for that. It was his tone that made the difference: he was joking yet serious at the same time.

Alice waited a few moments while thinking of how to explain her problem. Even though Hatter was a man and an adult, he was easier to talk to than going to her father. "I think I might be in love," she finally blurted out. The man beside her came to a halt, causing her to stop also. They stayed in silence for a moment or two, no sound heard except for their breathing.

Hatter finally looked back at her as if seeing her in a new light. Where had that little girl that he had saved gone? She was clearly not here, and instead a young woman had replaced her. She was much taller than she had been when he had met her and her face held an air of a young adult, not a child. He supposed he didn't notice it since he saw her nearly every week. But now that she had admitted such an adult feeling he knew he could no longer picture her as that little girl anymore. When had she grown up? He hesitated for a moment.

"How do you know?" he asked, recovering as he continued to walk. She hurried to catch up with him. "I'm not sure how to explain it. I feel warm when I am with him, I can't think. I can't concentrate with him around. And when he touched me..."

Alice realized how pathetic she sounded but she couldn't stop. It was like she had been underwater for so long and now she finally had the chance to break the surface and draw a breath. Realizing that he hadn't said anything she quieted. "And I don't know what to do. Papa would kill him."

Hatter, for the first time since she mentioned her problem, laughed. "I would think that any father would be protective of his only daughter," he said, "if she came to him and announced that she had fallen in love. If I were that boy I would run for the hills. Facing the Jabberwock might be an easier end than meeting your father."

She smiled and playfully smacked his arm. "Papa wouldn't hurt him," she said, although the image of her father meeting Jack as the boy that she loved instead of her best friend was less entertaining than she thought.

Nodding at the suit that was standing guard at the gates to the palace she turned to Hatter. "Thank you, again. I'll see you at the end of the week when Papa and I come to visit. You won't tell him, will you?" She waited for his answer, although she knew that Hatter wouldn't tell. He wouldn't betray her in such a way and Hatter wondered why she had even bothered to ask.

"Of course not," he answered, smiling and tipping his hat to her. "Goodnight, Alice."

He watched her run up the path to the side entrance of the building, staring at the girl who was no longer a child but a young woman.

-

It was almost a week later that Robert came to his shop alone. Seeing the man he excused himself from instructing an employee on the proper way to take inventory, although the young man continued to record the about of tea cartons in his own way.

"Good afternoon Mr. Hamilton. Daughter-less today?" he asked, smiling as he leaned over the counter.

Robert smiled slightly before sitting himself down at a stool at the counter. "I wanted to come thank you, for walking Alice home that night," he explained, pausing to extract a handkerchief from his pocket to cough. Pausing for a moment he recovered and hastily stored the cloth away. "She doesn't understand that she can't be going around the city alone, especially at night."

Alice was his world. He couldn't stand how she couldn't see that if anything happened to her he would be crushed. Yet she was growing older and wouldn't stay glued to his side as she often would when she had been younger. It was harder to keep an eye on her.

Hatter brushed off Robert's explanation. "It was no problem. She just forgot the time was all. I don't think you have much to worry about with Alice." He paused. "I'm very protective of the little lady. I wouldn't have let her walk back alone."

He couldn't not be protective of her after knowing her for so long. She was a sweet girl and although he didn't normally spend time with many people her age she was a good friend. March teased him all the time about having a thirteen year old friend but Hatter had taken to just putting the man on longer shifts in retaliation.

Robert stood up before taking in a careful breath. He resisted wiping at his eyes to force himself to stay awake. He had been working with a new chemical the past few weeks and he had gotten little sleep because of his research. He supposed his sudden cough and aches were a result of lack of sleep.

"But thank you again Hatter. It is comforting to know someone else is watching my daughter when I can't."

The two didn't think about the conversation until three years later when Alice turned sixteen.


	3. Chapter 3

Ooc: Sorry about such a delay in chapters. Finals and the holidays didn't leave a lot of time. I know that some of you expressed a bit of concern about the age difference, and I hope that I have explained it well enough in this chapter. If you have any more questions, please pm me.

I also chose to give the Duchess a name.

Thank you all for your reviews. I am now going to start sending a preview of the next chapter to any registered reviewer that reviews in the future, starting with this chapter.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Lewis Carroll owns _Alice's Adventures in Wonderland _and _Through the Looking Glass_. Syfy owns "Alice".

At fifteen Alice had her first kiss. She could remember it clearly as if it had happened the day before. She and Jack had just returned from a walk in the Heart's extensive hedge maze, and without any provocation, Jack had leaned over and kissed her. Looking back on it she realized how spontaneous and odd it was, but at that moment she hadn't thought anything other than the fact that Jack's lips were on hers.

At sixteen many more kisses and stolen moments together had followed. The two couldn't be outright with the way that they felt in public yet, until Jack as officially crowned. There was always talk of some betrothal for Jack by the Aces and if anyone knew how fond Jack was of the scientist's daughter, the Aces might speed up their marriage talks in order to nip the growing attraction in the bud.

Yet once Jack turned eighteen, and officially given the crown, the Aces would no longer have such a hold on them. They would simply be dissolved into the advisory council with the rest of the suits. Then, Jack could do whatever he wanted. He often hinted at their future together but had never come outright and announced to Alice that she would be queen. At her age she didn't realize that young love such as theirs didn't last forever or that it was most likely that he would marry a noblewoman. As a sixteen year old girl, she was looking at the present.

But sometimes, she wondered what would happen if Jack did ask her to marry him. She thought that she would accept although the thought of what the council and other nobles would think often worried her. But then she would calm and laugh at herself for thinking of a problem that hadn't even occurred yet. After all, Jack had never proposed.

But as the day of his eighteenth birthday and coronation neared Alice noticed a growing sense of urgency in her friend. His kisses were hurried and he often glanced over his shoulder when they were alone. She didn't ask him what bothered him since it only agitated him more. Instead she watched as he became more and more agitated through the weeks.

Alice watched as Jack's tension disappeared on his coronation day, much to her surprise. She thought that it would be heightened then since he was to be in front of so many people to receive such an honor.

She had woken before the sun was up that day in order to prepare. Being so close to the king she was invited personally to attend the procession from the palace to the cathedral in the center of the city, and then back to the palace for the night's festivities. She

A sharp knock at the door to the Hamilton's chambers broke her from her thoughts. Hurrying to the door, and nearly tripping over Dinah, she helped to usher in two maids that were lent to her to prepare. The Hamilton's had a small team of servants that helped to keep their apartments in order, but none were skilled in hairstyling. The two women quickly set to work setting her hair into curls and applying a thin layer of rouge to her cheeks. The entire time her father slept soundly in the next room over, despite the fact that one of the maids had knocked over a small basket of hairbrushes and pomade. Alice had noticed that her father had aged greatly the past two years. His joints were giving him trouble and he often went to bed earlier than normal, but woke up more exhausted than ever. He tried to hide his bloody handkerchiefs from her but she had noticed them a few months earlier.

After the two women finished with her hair she was helped into her gown. Her father had purchased the sky blue gown for her a few months earlier and she had been shocked at the price when he had paid the seamstress. But he had insisted upon her getting it for the coronation. She often wondered if he too worried about her among the nobles, and if they would look down on her. Being the child of the Head Scientist wasn't a terrible position, but it didn't come with noble blood.

Carefully clasping a pearl necklace around her neck she thanked the two women heartily before dismissing them to help prepare the Great Hall for that night's festivities. Pausing in her father's bedroom she gently placed a hand on his shoulder, kissed his balding head, and hurried from the apartments.

Nearly thirty minutes later the procession was almost about to leave the palace courtyards. The Aces were already in their position at the head of the crowd, each on matching black geldings. Following the Aces was the rest of the council with Jack behind them. She didn't even attempt to catch his eye as a groom helped her up onto her own horse. There was too much for him to think upon before the coronation. But he instead sought out her gaze, smiling as her eyes connected to his.

She was distracted by the sight of someone being helped onto a horse beside her. The blonde woman sneered down at the groom who had nearly ripped her hem while helping her up. Picking up her reins the blonde stared down at Alice.

"Lady Hamilton," was all the Duchess Rosalie said in greeting. She turned her pale face forward once more, completely ignoring Alice. Instead she focused on Jack. Alice frowned slightly as the group started to move out of the courtyard. Gently patting the neck of her eight year old bay gelding, she glanced over at the Duchess beside her. Rosalie had been a playmate of both Alice and Jack when they had been younger, but as the years had gone by, Rosalie had become colder toward Alice. She couldn't understand why, as she couldn't recall ever having offended her. But for some reason she couldn't avoid Rosalie's scowls.

Her attention was quickly averted as they came closer to the crowds that began to line the streets. The common people were as close to the barricades that the Suits had constructed as they were capable of, each trying to get a sight of their future King. Behind them stood the wealthy merchant class watching from their balconies or doorsteps. Between the multitude of colors that the procession was wearing, the confetti flying from balconies, and the cheering of the crowd Alice almost felt as if she was trapped in a snow globe. There was so much to take in that she didn't even notice her long time friend watching the crowd from his own doorstep.

Hatter had been shocked quite a few times in his life. His help with the rest of the resistance in displacing the Queen of Hearts had been one. And the time that he had and March had gone out drinking and somehow woken up on his roof was another. But seeing little Alice Hamilton, who could no longer be considered a child, dressed up as a woman of the court ranked high in his memories of being surprised.

He had nearly missed the procession that morning, having overslept. Since the coronation day's festivities would include free wine in the streets for all of Wonderland's citizens, he knew better than to open his shops for the day. Instead of getting up early as he always did to head out for work, he had allowed himself to sleep in. He hadn't seen a need to wake early since the celebration at the palace wouldn't begin until later that night. Besides the nobles, man important merchants were invited. Being the top tea provider in Wonderland, and his family having donated quite a bit of money to help the resistance, Hatter had acquired an invitation. And now he mentally thanked himself that he hadn't slept a moment longer, or he wouldn't have seen the woman before him. She clearly didn't see him, even though his attention was locked onto her. She looked older, like a different person. As the procession passed by his townhouse, and the people hurried along behind it, he realized that he had fallen in love.

Alice had sat quietly throughout the entire ceremony, even though it had been over two hours, and watched as Jack officially was declared King of Wonderland. She rarely ever saw the boy look solemn but throughout the entire ceremony he never flickered a smile. The only time he allowed himself to relax was when the cathedral doors were opened to the applauding crowd outside. Yet that seemed to be days ago when the festivities had started later that night. It seemed as if all of the guests had forgotten how important the morning had been. Instead, they focused on the ongoing party that night.

**

Robert had even gotten up from his bed to stay a few hours in the ball room. He was seated on a chair at one of the multiple tables that had been scattered around the room as he observed the party-goers. He carefully noted the people that passed by:The Lord and Lady Lory were at the table beside his, whispering to each other while countless other young ladies and gentlemen waltzed across the floor. His eyes kept straying to the Lory couple. He knew quite well that Lady Lory was about four years older than Alice, since he had recalled seeing the woman playing with Alice during their childhood. But he also knew Lord Lory to be nearly one hundred and twenty. Yet, as he watched them, they practically looked the same age. He could easily pass for twenty-six, or twenty-seven.

The ages differences often made Robert unsettled but it didn't seem to bother Wonderland's citizens. Age didn't seem to matter, since their appearances defied what they would look like had they lived in Robert's previous world.

His attention moved to his daughter, who was currently the partner of the new King in a waltz. To Robert she looked dazzling and he lamented that her mother wasn't there to see how she had grown. Taking a last swig of his wine goblet he hoisted himself up from his chair and left the ballroom to the young.

As the dance ended Alice carefully curtsied to Jack before leaving the dance floor. Her cheeks felt warm with the exertion of continuous dancing, causing her to carefully take a glass of champagne from a passing waiter's tray. She sipped from it for a moment as she watched the crowd.

"Care for a dance, m'lady?"

Alice nearly dropped her glass at the familiar voice. Instead she hurriedly set down her glass on a table, practically spilling it, and embraced the man beside her.

"Hatter! I didn't know that you were coming," she said before pulling back to look at him. She thought nothing wrong in hugging her friend, although he had seemed somewhat rigid in her arms. She ignored it and instead beamed at him.

"Of course I'll dance with you. You needn't ask."

He pushed a smile to his face and led her out among the dancers. He had almost not came that night but eventually had forced himself. As much as he wanted to see Alice again it was too risky to be around her. But he had needed to see her.

He carefully fixed his black top hat before taking up her arms to send them around the room. His mind was far away from the ballroom as he went over possibilities in his head. His mother had been eighteen when she had married his father. Alice wasn't much younger than she had been. And his father had nearly been one hundred and two. Hatter was younger than that, although not by much. Age wasn't much of a problem for him but he knew that Alice's father might take offense: age was regarded differently in his world than in Wonderland.

Maybe settling down wouldn't be a bad thing. He had been alone for quite some time now, and it would be nice to have someone waiting for him in his lonely townhouse. Maybe he could even place March in charge of the shop someday so he could stay home. He already had two other employees covering the other shops.

As Hatter imagined a possible future, Alice tried to keep her eyes on Jack. He had taken Rosalie as a partner and much to her annoyance, the Duchess was making him laugh. As soon as the song ended Hatter hastily bowed to her.

"I'll see you this week again, won't I?" he asked, much to her surprise. Normally he wordlessly expected both her and her father. But for some reason he was almost frantic to make sure that she was going.

"If Papa is feeling up to it we will both go but if not, I'll be there," she said, watching as he fidgeted with his jacket. She didn't have time to question him as he bowed again, flashed her a quick smile, and began to weave through the guests to exit the room.

Watching her friend in surprise she waited a few moments watching him before heading back to her glass.

**

Hatter smacked March's front door, not stopping until his half-asleep friend opened it. "Do you know the time?" he asked, his voice sarcastic even laced in sleep. Hatter rolled his eyes before pushing past him to enter the house.

"I've got to speak to you about something."


	4. Chapter 4

Ooc: Here is chapter four. Thank you all for reviewing and favoriting. If you review again, I'll send another preview.

Dislcaimer: I own nothing. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass belong to Lewis Carroll. "Alice" belongs to Syfy.

"The gray one, with the pink sash really is nice. Don't you think so, Jack?"

The man in question barely glanced over at the sketch lying in Alice's lap before nodding. Woman's fashion was something that he had never understood, and had never bothered to learn about. Why they needed several petticoats, a corset, stockings, garters- not to mention their actual gown- was totally unnecessary, according to the new king. But he simply smiled and nodded to the seamstress to accept Alice's choice.

The woman gathered up the remaining sketches before quickly curtseying and exiting the room. The pair could hear her walk all the way down the hall by her jingling pockets of pins. Hurrying across the room she embraced her best friend in thanks. "It will be a wonderful present," she said, smiling as she pulled back from him. "I can't wait to wear it. Thank you so much, Jack."

As her seventeenth's birthday neared Jack had given her the chance to choose a new gown from the royal seamstresses for his gift, although he continuously hinted at another. She had tried to pry it out of her friend for at least a week but he hadn't given her any clues at all. Although she didn't like the idea of giving up, she knew that she wouldn't get an answer out of him until the next month.

Jack bent to kiss her, not minding at all that the Suits standing guard at the door could see.

**

Robert coughed into his handkerchief while pausing in his work. Turning away from his mixture of chemicals he glanced into the handkerchief, already knowing what he would see. Bright red blood starred back at him, as it had starred at him for the last three years. At first he had thought it had been a fever, or cold of some type that had been causing him pain. But years later he was finding no relief in the illness. He wasn't exactly sure what it was that was destroying his lungs until a month earlier.

It had come to his attention that a substance he had been testing in a vaccine three years earlier had been discovered lethal. He had excluded the substance from the vaccine before distribution and had thought himself safe from the contact. But the week that he had worked with it had been enough to start the slow decay of his lungs.

He had only linked the two together after re-reading his notes in reference to an earlier vaccine. Now, he knew, it was only a matter of time. He had tried to broach the subject to Alice but hadn't been able to break the news to her. She was much too excited planning for her birthday that he just couldn't ruin her smile. After her birthday he would tell her. He could last a month, he hoped.

But how could he tell her? And what would he do to make sure that she was protected after he was gone?

He couldn't stand being in their apartments anymore listening to her, watching her smile, watching her continue not realizing that soon he would not be with her anymore. So he had taken to walking around the city at night, trying to avoid seeing her. He had begun to notice that she was slowly taking offense to his time spent away from him which only kept him away longer, since he couldn't stand to see her upset. If he continued this way they both were going to get hurt.

But there was so much to think about. What would happen to her when he was gone? He couldn't let her fend for herself. For all its advancements in science and medicine, Wonderland held a very Victorian way of thinking. There wasn't many opportunities for a single woman to make her own way in life without being shunned.

He would have to find her a guardian of some type. He had no family here to take up that position and he certainly couldn't send her back to the other side of The Looking Glass. Had there been a reigning adult King and Queen, he could have left her under their care as a ward. But with a King that was barely older than Alice, Robert wouldn't dare propose the idea. The young man barely had any knowledge of the world yet and would be much too consumed with his new duties and spending some of the treasury money that had been guarded from him for so long.

On one particular walk he had been making around the city he had paused inside a nearby shop to warm himself for a moment before beginning the long walk back. Wonderland winters were colder than he had felt before in his life beyond The Looking Glass. Alice of course made no complaints, having nothing to compare it to.

"Can I get you something, sir?"

He looked up, startled, as a young man looked at him imploringly. Glancing around Robert realized himself to be in David Hatter's shop, having not even recognized it when he had been strolling through the streets. Robert turned his attention back to the boy, who clearly was a new employee by the nervous look in his eyes, and answered.

"I'll have half a pound of strawberry tea leaves."

Alice had begun to grow suspicious of his nightly walks. At least with this he could give her a reason for why he had gone out that night. The boy hurried behind the counter, nearly upsetting a stack of saucers that had been resting on mahogany counter, and began to measure out the leaves. Robert reached into his pocket to pick out a shilling to give the boy as he watched him clumsily place the leaves onto the scale.

Another thing that struck him as odd in Wonderland was their money. They used the British system of money, but with their own crests. When he stopped to think of it, it was almost as if he had been thrown into a time machine. Along with their old-fashioned ways of thinking, their style of dress also seemed to be taken from a page in a history book. Wonderland dress ranged from the Middle Ages to the Victorian period. Even as he looked around the shop he could pick up on different eras: a couple in the corner clearly in 17th century clothing, complete with the woman's french hood; a young woman in a Regency era gown by the window sipping from a delicate looking tea cup; a man standing up from his table with a 19th century jacket and trousers. Robert himself was wearing an outfit similar to the other mans, having found the ensemble more comfortable than the breeches and stockings some men favored from the 18th century.

"I'll take over Chase. Why don't you help Eric with the cups in the back?"

Hatter tried to ignore the relieved look in his new employee's face as he was able to go hide in the back from customers for another hour. Shaking his head he turned to Robert as the man settled himself at the counter.

"For Alice, Mr. Hamilton?" he asked, trying to sound indifferent. Had Robert not been caught up in his thoughts he might have noticed how hard Hatter was trying to sound that way. Instead he nodded. "She enjoys a cup at night sometimes. I figured I might as well pick her up some while I was out."

Hatter scooped the tea from the scale with a small, silver shovel before placing it in a cloth sack. He tied a string carefully around the top before handing it over the counter. Noticing the distracted look on the man's face he hesitated before replacing the shovel. "Is everything alright, Mr. Hamilton?"

For a moment Robert thought how weird it was that Hatter would call him by his last name, even though the tea shop owner was probably older than him. Straying from his thoughts he realized that Hatter had asked him a question. "Its nothing, its...." He hesitated. It would be nice to get advice from someone who has live in Wonderland his whole life; he might know what would be best to do with Alice when he was gone. "I'm worried about Alice," he began, not bringing his eyes from the cloth bag for a few minutes.

"I don't think that I will be here much longer, and I am worried for her."

Hatter took a moment to understand, before realizing what Robert was implying. He observed the scientist for a moment as he tried to calculate his age. Those on the other side of The Looking Glass lived longer than Robert looked. At least, he thought so.

"I've been ill," he continued, as if reading Hatter's thoughts," and I don't think it will be long now. I need to know how to take care of Alice when I'm gone. I figured that you would know what to do, having been in Wonderland your whole life. How do the people of Wonderland do this? She has no family here to take her in. Is there someplace she could go? A school of some type?"

Hatter felt as if the world had stopped for a moment. Instantly choices ran through his head. He could explain to Robert that there was a type of school for privileged young ladies, a finishing school or sorts, on the other side of the city where the nobility had their estates. Or-dare he think it- he could tell Robert his other option.

Hatter had spent most of the night of Jack's coronation talking with March about what to do, but his friend had no solution for him besides the obvious: tell Alice how he felt. But Hatter knew he couldn't do that since he clearly knew that Alice simply saw him as a good friend. Not to mention that he could see that she was in love with the king. But was a marriage with her and Jack really possible? He doubted that the Suits would allow such a thing. The king was to be married to a noble, not to a scientist's daughter. Would his proposition save her from any heartache that she would face when she found out that a marriage between her and Jack would never happen? Or was he simply thinking of himself?'

Realizing that Robert was waiting for his answer, Hatter prepared to do the most selfish thing that he had ever done in his life.

"There really isn't much a young woman could do without a guardian," he explained, feeling as if his heart was going to burst from his chest. "Seeing as how I have known her for so long, and that I clearly have a stable income and would be able to provide for her, I could take care of her."

The reactions that he had thought Robert would possibly give him didn't include the friendly smile and gentle laugh that he was now showing.

"I don't think a bachelor like you would want to take care of a sixteen year old girl, Mr. Hatter," he said, preparing to stand from the stool he had been resting on. "There are too many things to worry about taking care of Alice."

Picking up the bag of tea he prepared to hand the shilling to Hatter, but paused as the man spoke again.

"I believe that you misunderstood me, Mr. Hamilton. By me saying I would take care of her, I would take her of her as a husband to a wife. I would marry her."

Noticing that Robert had said nothing in response Hatter hurried forward with his reasoning. "She is nearly a year away before being considered an adult, and many more women have been married earlier than that here. She wouldn't want for anything: my family has left me more than enough and I have three shops of my own. I could protect her."

Robert finally broke away from his thoughts, uncertainty showing on his face, and prepared to speak. But Hatter, seeing that the man was uncertain, cut him off. "Do you really think that the king will be able to marry your daughter, Mr. Hamilton?"

His words delivered the final blow again Robert's opposition. As Robert thought about it he realized how foolish his daughter's romance with the king was, seeing as how it would come to nothing. He had liked to believe that she would be married to him, and that he wouldn't have to worry about her when he was gone. But Hatter had woken him up to reality, and reality stung more than he liked.

Grasping the edge of the counter Robert tucked the bag into the pocket of his coat. Trying to speak, but failing for a moment, he finally looked up at the man before him. "I'll speak to you tomorrow night," was all he said before leaving the shop. As soon as he stepped out into the cold streets he didn't know whether his problem about Alice was gone, or if a new one had started.

It was nearly closing time when Robert showed up the next day, surprising both Hatter and March who were just about to leave. But what surprised the pair even more was the man that had accompanied Robert, who they learned to be a lawyer specialized in writing wills.

*

It was a week before her birthday and Alice still couldn't figure out what Jack was going to surprise her with. Normally it wasn't that hard for her to get her friend to tell her anything, but he refused to even mention her gift whenever she brought it up. Reluctantly she had stopped asking him. She gently ran her hand over the finished dress that Jack had given her- the one she had picked out from the seamstress- before allowing the skirt of the dress to settle back into place. She would wear it at her birthday dinner that Jack was throwing for her. Tying her nightgown a bit more snugly around her she exited her bedroom and entered the sitting room. Her father hastily tucked his handkerchief into his pocket as soon as she walked in, and turned to greet her.

"You had better go to bed soon, Papa," she began, picking up Dinah. "You'll be too tired to go walking with me tomorrow. You know it will snow soon and we won't even be able to set foot in the gardens then."

He clasped her free hand, nearly upsetting Dinah from her arms.

"You know I love you, Jellybean. Right? That what I do for you is for the best?"

Surprised by his sudden proclamation Alice hesitated.

"Of course Papa. Why wouldn't I?" He was confusing her and it was making her nervous. The cat shifted in her arms as she unconsciously tightened her grip. Gently patting his hand she moved toward her bedroom door.

"You really should get some sleep. You will, won't you? You shouldn't fall asleep in that arm chair like last week."

For a moment her nervous behavior seemed to pass.

"Goodnight, Papa."

Holding the cat closer to her she went into her room, not knowing it was the last time she would speak to her father.

The next morning she was woken by one of the maids of her chambers who had a horrified look on her face. Instantly Alice threw back the bed covers, upsetting Dinah from where she had been resting on her legs, and grasped the maid.

"What happened Jane? What is it?" she asked as possibilities of what had caused Jane to look so terrified flew threw her head. The young woman shook her head, grasping the hands of her mistress tightly.

"I tried to wake Mr. Hamilton, but he won't respond. He is so cold, m'lady! I don't know what to do." Alice felt her face pale and had the maid not been holding onto her, she might have collapsed. No; the girl must be wrong. Her father was probably just deep in sleep.

"Go get the physician now, Jane," she said, surprisingly sounding calm although her body clearly showed that she was not. She watched as the girl ran from the room, throwing the door open from the apartments so quickly that the wooden door banged against the walls. Alice peered from her doorway to the sitting room, seeing that her father was still in his chair from the night before. Allowing herself to breathe for a moment she reluctantly moved forward.

Robert was probably just sleeping in his chair again, like he had been last week. He would wake up, laugh at Jane's foolishness, and then he and Alice would go for their walk. But the sight of his pale face, and the lack of movement of his chest squashed her hopeful thoughts. Falling to her knees beside her father she grasped his cold hands, only realizing that she had begun to cry when she felt tears run down her face.

The next day found her dressed full in black, being led from the small chapel of the palace to the courtyard. A small group of mourners were with her, including Jack, when they set out to the cemetery. She had almost forgotten to bring her heavy shawl with her before they had left but Jane had quickly thrown it over her shoulders. But it wouldn't have mattered even if Jane had forgotten: Alice was too numb to feel how cold it was. She felt as if she was walking through a haze of smoke since seeing her father in his chair. She had looked straight ahead of herself throughout his funeral mass and had to physically be led to the carriage that would follow the hearse to the cemetery by Jack. Some of the other mourners were following on horseback and she would have been with them, had Jack not realized how likely it was that she would fall off due to not paying attention. Instead she had been put into Jack's carriage to ride with him to the burial.

She barely spoke since finding her father except for a few 'thank yous' when people, some who she had never seen before, expressed their sorrow at Robert's death. Her eyes felt as if they would never dry and she was almost convinced that she would never be rid of tears for the rest of her life. Jack held her arm carefully as they arrived at the cemetery and kept her arm through his as Robert was placed into the earth. She was almost back in the carriage when someone touched her arm.

Turning around she almost smiled at the sight of Hatter. He must have been among those standing at the burial but having not been paying attention, she hadn't noticed him. "I"m so sorry Alice," he began, watching as Jack stepped a few feet away to speak to someone. He looked unsettled, having never been good at times like these. "I know everyone is telling you the same thing but I sincerely am sorry. I would like to speak to you later. Come by the shop later, please? I know this is asking a lot at you at a time like this, but it is important."

Jack extended his hand to assist her into the carriage. "I'll try to," she said, taking her friend's hand and stepping in. She hesitated before sitting. "Thank you Hatter. Really." Jack stepped inside beside her before a footman closed the door. Watching as the two left, Hatter tried to think of exactly how to explain to Alice that she was going to become his wife.

Sitting in the carriage Alice allowed herself to rest her head against the cushioned side of the carriage. Jack gently squeezed her gloved hand, staying silent for a moment as he watched her. "When was the last time you slept?"he asked, causing her to lift her head from the wall. She thought for a moment before answering. "Two nights ago, I suppose," she said, surprising herself. Jack watched her for a moment before turning back to the window.

"Make sure you sleep before your father's will is read tonight. Please, Alice."

*

Again, Alice found herself woken by Jane, hours after the funeral. "You will be late for the reading, m'lady," she said as she helped Alice sit up. Alice smoothed the wrinkles of her gown, having napped in it after coming back from the funeral, before realizing that she had missed her talk with Hatter. Well, she would just have to stop by after the reading. She couldn't delay that by going to see him.

Jane quickly brushed her hair before sending her off to Jack's receiving chambers. Jack- along with being her best friend -had been included in the will, and had allowed the will to be written in his private rooms. The two friends sat together as her father's lawyer unpacked the paper from his leather case. Without a greeting or any type of condolence the man began to read off what her father had left behind.

Jack, being a friend of Alice's and the king, received his best gold pocket watch in thanks for his previous position in Wonderland's service. The rest, unsurprisingly, went to Alice. Alice was about to stand up to show Jack the pocket watch mentioned, but the lawyer continued to speak.

"As for Alice's position after my death, I leave her under the protection of David Hatter, as his wife."

Alice almost didn't realize what he had said, since it sounded as if the ocean was roaring in her ears. She heard Jack ask the man to repeat what he had said but she knew that it would make no difference. What was written on the page wouldn't be changed even if Jack asked the man to say it again. Ignoring Jack calling after her Alice ran from the room, intent on speaking to her old friend to demand an answer.

This would be fixed. It had to be.


	5. Chapter 5

AN: I'm sorry for the delay in updates. I mapped out the rest of this story and even have a sequel in mind. If you want to read some more of my work, I have a new Alice/Hatter story up too. I will still be continuing this one.

Dislcaimer: I own nothing. Lewis Carroll owns "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass". Syfy owns "Alice".

What the man said couldn't be right. Her father hadn't left her to Hatter. He would have never done such a thing. Although he knew as little as she did in regards to Jack proposing to her, he had to assume that there was a small chance that the king might. Why would he ruin her chances with Jack that way? Annoyed tears escaped from her eyes as she tried to track down a page somewhere in the palace. This had to be a misunderstanding.

Finally finding one of the young men in the king's livery she almost forcefully grabbed his shirt sleeve and requested a carriage to be brought down to the front courtyard. The frightened boy nodded quickly before taking off down the hall to fetch the carriage driver. Forcing herself to take a deep breath Alice leaned against the stone wall. She would straighten this out and just forget that it happened. Although to forget something like this was nearly impossible.

Poor Hatter! If she was upset there was no doubt that he would be too when he found out. She didn't even want to think how embarrassing it was going to be having to explain this to him. Even after he gently rejected her it would be hard to continue their friendship the way that it had always been. Walking as quickly as she could she made her way down to the courtyard where the grooms were just finishing hitching the horses. She gave the address of Hatter's townhouse to the driver before stepping into the carriage. She had never actually been to his home before but he had shown her once when they had gone walking. If she remembered correctly, it was two blocks away from his shop.

She took a deep breath as she tried to focus on the houses passing by the carriage window. After this quick conversation with Hatter she could go back to the way things were. Maybe one day she'll even forget about it. But still her stomach twisted at the thought of confronting him. The rocking of the carriage and the thoughts flying through her head made her feel as if she was going to be sick. She unwillingly closed her eyes try to relax.

But now, how much time did she have to think about what she would say? She couldn't figure out her location by closing her eyes. Every time she did try to open them she was hit with another wave of nausea that forced her to close them again. She continued this way for the entire ride until the knocking on the carriage door by the footman jolted her back to reality. The footman, having heard from the page how alarming the Lady Alice had been to him, barely met her eyes as he helped her down.

"I won't be long," was all she said before starting up the short steps to the front door of the house. She breathed carefully to make sure that she wasn't going to be sick, and when finding that she was alright, knocked on the door.

Barely a second later a rather plump looking old woman answered the door. She surveyed Alice for a moment before reluctantly allowing her into the entrance hall. Alice barely had a chance to take in the room before the woman accosted her. "May I help you?" she asked in a voice normally used to scold young children. Instantly Alice focused her attention on the woman and narrowed her eyes slightly at the tone used.

"I'm here to see Mr. Hatter. I must speak to him right away.....my name is Alice Hamilton."

It was as if she had announced that it was the old woman's unbirthday. Instantly her face lit up and any earlier hostility had vanished. "Lady Alice! Please, come in here. I'll just get Mr. Hatter." Before she knew what was happening she was being jostled into a parlor. The woman nearly pushed her into a plush armchair in her haste and left the young woman without another word. Recovering from such an abrupt greeting Alice found herself looking around the room. Slowly she stood up from her chair, trailing her fingertips over the green velvet as she stood. It was clear that the room was owned by a man, from the dark wood to the earthy colors that accented it. Two armchairs-including the one that she had been sitting on- were positioned on either side of an empty fire place. A short bookshelf rested near the only window of the room, which faced out to the street. On the other side of the room was a bureau with a series of objects upon it; pictures, portraits, knick-knacks. One particular picture-a standard black and white one- caught her attention. Carefully she leaned slightly as to get a better look of the man and woman in it.

The man was tall and thin while the woman beside him was much shorter. They both had dark colored hair from what she could tell of the black and white picture, although she could not determine their eye color. But there was something in the man's eyes that set him apart from the woman. It was almost as if he was in on a joke or knew something that Alice clearly did not. It made her uncomfortable.

"My parents."

Jumping she straightened and turned around. Hatter stood at the entrance to the room, smiling gently at her before glancing back at the picture. "It was taken a few months after their wedding,I believe. Mad looking fellow isn't he?" His smile widened in reference to his father before he gestured to her vacated arm chair. "Sit, won't you?"

Alice felt her face grow warm and she carefully adjusted the skirt of her mourning gown before going toward the armchair. She wasn't sure how to exactly explain this mistake to him without embarrassing the both of them. As she was about to speak the woman from before entered the room with a tea tray. Still beaming at Alice she set the tray down on a short table beside the two before quickly leaving the room. "Mrs. Merryweather has been with me for years," he explained in reference to the woman. "She is a very capable housekeeper. I think that you might like her." He smiled before glancing again at the door where the woman had been. "I used to play quite a few tricks on her as a boy. I don't think she has every really forgiven me for them."

She numbly accepted the tea cup and saucer that he offered her and didn't realize that it was her favorite strawberry tea until about four sips in. "I'm sorry to visit on such short notice," she began before staring down at the cup. Hesitating she finally looked back up at him. "I know you had wanted to speak to me earlier but I hadn't been able to make it."

He waved his hand in the air, as if brushing away her apology. She continued,"I spoke to the executioner of my father's will and I......I'm sorry to say this but you were mentioned." Finding that her hands were shaking too much to hold the tea cup she placed back on the tray. "For some reason my father felt that it was best to leave you something."

Her face felt as if it was on fire. She could feel him watching her, waiting for her to continue.

"He felt that he should leave you me."

There was a moment or two of silence before she looked over at him. He didn't seem changed by what she had told him, and she realized that he looked as calm as if she had told him that it was snowing outside.

Not knowing what else to say she continued to talk, but a bit faster than before. "I realize how embarrassing this is and I apologize for it. All you need to do is speak to the executioner of the will and we can have this mistake fixed." She kept her eyes on him but still didn't see any reaction from him. Why wasn't he telling her to get out of his sight and to never speak to him again? Why wasn't he laughing at her?

Finally after what seemed to be nearly a minute of silence she moved to stand with a final "I'm sorry".

"It wasn't a mistake."

His voice stopped her mid-rise. She was so used to hearing his joking, friendly tone that this sudden serious one surprised her. Her eyes flickered to him as she wearily set down his own tea cup before standing. "Your father was right in including me in his will. After all, I had already signed the paperwork. It would have been unlawful for him not to include it. I was going to speak to you about it earlier."

For a moment Alice felt as if she was in a bubble. Hatter was still speaking, although she couldn't hear him or speak Instead she was running over what he had said in her mind while still half rising from her chair. Finally she felt his hand on her arm helping her up from her weird position. She quickly jerked back her arm as if he had burned her.

He stopped speaking and the two stared at each other for a moment.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you but I am going to have to get this removed from the will," she said, her voice surprisingly calm from shock. She moved to leave the room but she stopped once he spoke.

"You know that it won't be approved, right?" he ventured before taking a few steps toward her. He stopped by the cold look that she gave him.

Instead of moving closer he kept speaking. "You aren't considered an adult yet by law. What your father wrote in his will still stands as he was your guardian at the time of his death. No lawyer is going to be able to fight that, Alice." His voice gentled for a moment. "But it will be alright. I need a wife and you need someone to take care of you. We both are such good friends....don't you see how this will work out?"

She felt herself growing warm again, although this time from anger and not embarrassment. "Why didn't you ask me?" she asked, trying to keep her voice low. It wouldn't do to throw a tantrum that the neighbors could hear. "Did you have no concern for what I thought? That maybe I was in love with someone?"

Growing frustrated he fixed the rim of his hat. "This is best for you-for us- Alice. You are almost eighteen....you have to grow up. You know as well as I do that there is no way that the king could marry you. Don't you see that the council would put a stop to it? Or that the nobles would be bullying him into rejecting the idea? It would have never happened."

She could see that he was trying to make her see reason, but his choice of words kept her from feeling sympathetic to his attempts. Without another word she left the room and opened the door to the front steps. The footman that had been sitting on the edge of the carriage quickly jumped up to help her inside. She barely noticed that Hatter was standing at the entrance to his home and instead focused on the empty bench in front of her. After arriving back at the palace she found that she had gripped the material of her skirt so tightly that her knuckles burned when she tried to remove them. Feeling the blood moving back into her fingers she nearly stumbled out of the carriage. It wasn't until she was back in her apartments and Jane had innocently asked what was wrong that she began to cry.

The next day she set off for the city again. Jack had offered to accompany her but she had gently refused his help. She needed to think things through on her own to find her way out of this mess. He instead put his own group of lawyers to work on finding any way out of her fulfilling her father's will.

She dismissed the carriage driver after he pulled up to The Great Library, knowing that she would be there for too long to keep the man waiting. It was uncomfortably quiet in the cavernous room and she almost thought of returning to the palace and allowing Jack's lawyers to handle the matter. But seeing that a mousy looking librarian that was perched on a battered stool behind a desk had noticed her kept her from retreating. The woman nearly jumped from her chair in order to help her. "Good morning," she said cheerfully with a smile, clearly unaware of Alice's less than cheerful mood. "Can I help you find something?

Alice was unable to talk for a moment, having been taken aback by the woman's sudden, too cheerful greeting. "I'm looking for information about wills. I mean....the legality of wills." The woman gave her an odd look for a moment before reverting back to her earlier, wide smile. "All of our books on wills are located on the west side of the third floor. But we have a marvelous collection of clothing patterns on the east side of the first floor. Wouldn't that interest you a bit more?"

Momentarily puzzling over how the woman knew exactly what floor and wing the information she wanted was in, she shook her head. "It is very important that I see the information as soon as I can," she said with a bit of annoyance in her tone. Had this been another situation she would have responded to the woman kindly. But now was not the time to make friends. A surprised look crossed the woman's eyes before she silently began moving toward a carpet lined staircase near her vacated desk. Alice hurried to catch up with her as the woman moved much faster over the numerous steps than she was able to.

Trailing after the woman she came to a stop in front of a long shelf of books. "Here are all the books concerning wills," the woman said, a bit of her cheerfulness gone after Alice's rudeness. "If you need me, I will be at my desk." Flashing a smile once more the woman left. Alice turned her attention to the rows of books before glancing over the various titles. Every few books she pulled out a volume until she had quite a stack built up in her arms. She carried the stack to a small desk at the end of the row and began to skim through them.

She wasn't sure how long she had been there but when the light began to dim in the room she realized that she had been there for hours. She stacked her books to return them to their shelves even though she hadn't found anything to help her cause. She had come across mentioning minors in wills but the information hadn't helped her.

The librarian was missing from her desk when Alice returned to the main level and, not bothering to hunt her down to say goodbye, she left. The long walk back to the palace didn't bother her even though it was growing darker. She felt better alone without having Jack give her looks of pity or Jane clutch her arm with compassion. Both of them didn't know how she was feeling.

Before returning to her apartments she stopped for a moment in Jack's council room. His lawyers had left, leaving the young king to pour over their notes. Her footsteps startled him and she felt her stomach drop at the look on his face.

"I'm so sorry," was all he said as he embraced her.


	6. Chapter 6

Ooc: Sorry about such a long wait. I recently got ideas for this, so I decided to pick it up again. I also have ideas for "Mad Love". Thanks for reading.

Disclaimer: Lewis Carroll owns "_Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"_ and "_Beyond the Looking Glass_". Syfy owns "Alice".

She felt as if she was moving through a fog.

The hours seemed to stretch and she barely spoke anymore. She had a hard time trying to concentrate on anything, and more than once Jane had to try to bring her back into any conversation they were having. For her part Jane was trying her best to help her mistress in this transition. She had attempted to catch Alice's attention by helping her gather together the items needed for her trousseau, but found herself choosing the clothing by herself.

Alice couldn't find herself concentrating on what shade of blue she wanted her new formal gown to be or exactly how many new pairs of stockings she would need. Such things had no meaning when she was still trying to comprehend her father's death along with her new engagement. She was expecting her father to walk into the room and tell her that it had been all a joke and that everything would go back to normal. But she knew quite well that it would never happen.

Her eighteenth birthday should have been an exciting time for her, but she dreaded the party that was to be thrown for her that night. If it had been up to her she would have been content to just forget about the party and hide in her apartments as she had been doing for the past week. But Jack insisted on still throwing it in an effort to cheer her. She had noticed the few times that she had seen him that week that he had almost a pinched look to his face and had snapped at quite a few Suits. Normally he was well-tempered around them and his sudden change in behavior was setting a few to whisper about the cause.

Some days he tried to talk to her the entire day even though she only came out from her apartments for an hour or two. Others he didn't even attempt to see her and only came out of his rooms for council meetings. Had she been able to clear her mind and think she might have realized how bad this was hurting her friend too. He was in love with her and the thought of her being another man's wife was something he couldn't stand to think of.

She had clung to the idea of being his wife for so long that now that she knew it would never happen, she didn't want to face him. But she knew that she would have to at that night's ball. Wearily she allowed Jane to help her dress into the gown that she had picked out weeks earlier. It fit nicely, having been sewn by the king's own seamstress. Yet she didn't care how she looked and needed to be prodded by Jane to even consider putting on rouge to liven her face. Alice had been stubbornly refusing to even glance at the dress hanging on a small hook near her door.

The gown was beautiful-even she had to admit that-but she would rather wear a flour sack down the aisle. It wouldn't matter, seeing as how she didn't want to impress her groom at all. The ivory silk trimmed with lace around the neck and wrists almost seemed to implore her for her attention. She refused, and kept her back towards it. The maid carefully curled her hair and set it back with a clip before clasping a pearl necklace around Alice's neck. Jane hesitated before reaching for a ring box on the corner of the vanity table. Before she had a chance to grab it Alice's hand had come to rest on her arm.

"Not tonight," was all she said, causing the maid to abandon the idea of having Alice wear her engagement ring. Jane herself thought it was quite pretty. A man had delivered it the previous morning , and she thought the gold ring with the sapphire surrounded by a cluster of diamonds looked nice on her lady's hand. But all Alice had done was snap the box shut and place it on the edge of her vanity table, where it had stayed until this moment.

Alice quietly thanked Jane before beginning the short walk up a flight of stairs to Jack's apartments. This would be the last time that she would run up those flight of stairs to visit her friend; she was getting married tomorrow. The idea sent her stomach into a series of flips. She couldn't do this.

But her thoughts were interrupted by the page that had been in the receiving room, who had gone to alert Jack to her arrival. Moments later he emerged. He forced a smile onto his face as he greeted her, even though by looking at her eyes he could tell that she wasn't in the least bit excited to go to her own party.

"You look wonderful," he said, gently taking her hand. She allowed a small smile to flit across her face but it quickly fell. He squeezed her hand before folding her hand over his arm to escort her to the ballroom.

A girl's eighteenth birthday was a special thing in Wonderland. It marked her accession into womanhood, and nearly every well-to-do young lady had a party to celebrate it. She had been excited for months for this night and now she would very much like to just forget that she had ever planned it. But she would have to pretend that tonight was the most exciting night of her life, and to graciously accept congratulations on her impending wedding.

The two were announced to the crowd of nobles waiting in the ballroom, and were greeted by polite applause. After opening the first dance Alice found herself surrounded by a group of young women all speaking of her engagement and how lucky she was to have found a husband already. She politely thanked them even though she could see that the Duchess Rosalie seemed the most enthusiastic of the group. She thought it odd, until she realized what her marriage meant for Rosalie: Jack was free.

Excusing herself from the group she hurriedly picked up her wine glass and moved through the throng of people on the dance floor. Quietly she stepped out of the ballroom into the empty hallway. The quietness of the hallway felt weird after the volume of the ballroom. Leaning her head back against the wall she focused on the wall in front of her.

She knew that she would be married someday-it was expected of her-, but she had always pictured herself married to the fair haired man inside the ballroom. Her entire world had shifted so quickly that she was struggling to right herself. Being a merchant's wife wasn't something that she had ever thought that she would become. Jane had insisted that the transition wouldn't be as bad as she thought it would be. As Jane was allowed to accompany her, she would at least have a familiar face with her in her new home. Jane had been bold enough to mention that Hatter seemed to genuinely care for her, which had caused her mistress to give her a harsh look.

It was much easier to hate Hatter if she believed that he didn't care for her. But she knew as well as Jane did that he did care. It was a little upsetting. She almost felt a little bad disappointing him that she would not be reciprocating his feelings. After all, he had been her friend. She couldn't imagine viewing him the same way that Hatter saw her. She wasn't sure how their relationship would be after her marriage the next morning. If she had the choice, she would continue the way that they had always been together. But a chaste wife wasn't exactly encouraged. At night, sometimes when she was unable to sleep, she would remember the feeling of Jack's lips upon her own. Then she would think, for a fleeting moment, of possibly allowing Jack to be with her in the way that a husband was to a wife. But soon after the thought flew from her mind in shame. She didn't want to picture the look of shock on her father's face, had he still been alive. He had never wanted her to become Jack's mistress.

She wasn't sure how it would feel. There were, of course, some less than respectful ladies of the court. She had put up with listening to a few of them whispering about which man they had the night before, or which Suit they had their eyes on. Alice herself often found herself blushing at their talk, which led to their teasing of her. She wasn't sure how it would feel. Better than a kiss? She wasn't sure how anything could feel better than that. But she knew the mechanics, at least. When she had been eight she had witnessed one of the kitchen cats being pursued by a male stray. She had than tracked down her father and told him the terribly hilarious tale of the two cats 'fighting'. Her father had turned a shade of red that she had not thought possible before requesting Jane to explain to her the formation of life.

That had been years ago, and she knew that what had been explained to her was to follow in her marriage. She just found it hard to imagine doing that herself with Hatter. He didn't seem the type to force her, as she had noticed some of the noblemen in court had that tendency with their wives. She had never seen him in that position to know what he would do. The years that she had known him hadn't given her a look into his love life. Really, she didn't think that he had even had one. All she had seen him do was work.

Alice found her thoughts turning from her life with her husband once Jack emerged from the ballroom. He looked a little flushed, most likely from the heat of the ballroom. "Are you alright?" he asked, clearly knowing that she wasn't. The sash of his royal position suddenly seemed to capture all of his attention as he was unable to look at her. She reached to grab his hand causing him to look up at her. "Walk with me," she said, not bothering to use any of the courtly politeness that she should have used if they had been in public. Instead they were simply Alice and Jack again, and not a soon to be married woman and a king.

She found herself in the courtyard of their childhood a few moments later, having only chosen to go there moments before. It had been their refuge in their youth, and it would serve that purpose again tonight. She placed herself on the stone bench before gently tugging him to sit with her. Jack numbly placed himself next to her, refusing to let go of her hand. They remained in silence for a few moments before she finally spoke.

"Things will never be the same, will they?"

She sounded surprisingly calm, but he knew her well enough to not believe her tone. "We will still see each other," he insisted, although he wasn't sure if that would be possible. She would be another man's wife now, and he didn't want to taint her reputation if she was constantly seen around him. They stayed silent, just enjoying the time they had. Somewhere she could hear a feminine laugh following the mumbled words of a male's voice. It seemed as for the most part, everyone was still in the ballroom. Without realizing it, she had begun to cry. The sight of tears falling onto her hands left her almost shocked, as she had not even felt her eyes water. Jack looked down, having felt the liquid on his own hand as her hand was enveloped in his. He embraced her, not caring that his doublet was being stained by tears. He had planned this night so differently. He was going to propose that night, as he had kept that her final present.

"I was going to marry you," he whispered and was met by silence. The two stayed that way until the footsteps down the corridor alerted them to the end of the party.

Alice found herself woken early the next morning by Jane who insisted on thrusting her charge into a warm bath. Following that the maid set her hair into curls before helping her into the elaborate gown. Finally she retrieved the neglected ring box from Alice's vanity table. The young woman spared it a glance before carefully withdrawing it from the velvet lined box. Slipping it onto her left hand Alice glanced at it, a little surprised at how nice it looked on her hand. The early morning light caught the diamonds nicely, which complimented the sparkling sapphire nestled between them. Refusing to give the ring anymore attention she buried her hand into the folds of her skirt. Jane attached the pearls that she normally wore at special events around Alice's neck before standing back to view her.

"Perfect," she said, trying to get the young woman to show some sort of smile. But instead Alice simply looked at her causing Jane to abandon the idea of getting her to seem happy.

Jane had already dressed herself in her best gown that morning, as she was to be one of the witnesses at the wedding. It was not to be a great spectacle and instead would simply be Hatter, Alice, the priest, and two witnesses. The chapel was not to far from Hatter's townhouse so the bride wouldn't be showcased to the public. At least he had taken that into consideration. Already Alice's things had been packed and shipped to her new husband's house. The chambers where she had grown up seemed bare and cold.

Alice began the short walk down from her chambers to the courtyard. It was too early for the castle to be awake, and the only people she came across were yawning pages and stumbling maids. As she came up to the waiting carriage her bravado seemed to disappear. She wouldn't be coming back to her chambers afterward. She would be going to her new home. Jane gently pushed her on her back to help her realize where she was. After a moment she placed her hand into the footman's and stepped into the carriage, followed by Jane.

Alice was reminded of the trek to her father's funeral as they carriage was pulled along the deserted streets of the city. Only this time she was wearing white.

Shopkeepers began to open up their stores as they passed by. She numbly noted that all three of Hatter's shops would probably be closed today in celebration of his nuptials. She almost wanted to laugh. The jolting of the carriage as it stopped outside the chapel caused a feeling of panic to run through her. Her husband would be waiting beyond the door and she would have to follow him, whether she wanted to or not. She momentarily thought of refusing to leave the carriage, much like her five year old self would have done. But doing such a thing would be embarrassing and she didn't want to call more attention to herself.

No; she would act as a martyr.

Feigning a look of bravery she allowed herself to be led into the chapel by Jane. The only other people inside were Hatter, the priest, and Mr. March. She made her way down the aisle in silence, not running back to the exit as she wished to. Once she reached him she allowed him to take her hand, which felt cold against his skin. He looked at her in concern before the elderly priest launched into the ceremony. With gentle hands Hatter slipped the simple gold band on the same finger as her engagement ring while repeating what the priest was telling him.

Alice wanted to scream. The world felt as if it was spinning all around her. Why wouldn't it stop spinning! But she was carefully brought back to Earth by the priest addressing her. She whispered what she was told to say as with fumbling hands she placed a ring identical to her own wedding ring on Hatter's hand.

The priest finished up the ceremony shortly after that, requesting that the groom kiss his bride. Alice watched as her new husband carefully leaned toward her before quickly pecking her lips. The kiss was meant to cause her the least discomfort, and she appreciated his gesture although she was not about to tell him that.

"Congratulations, Alice," Jane whispered before embracing her longtime charge. Alice clung to her, barely noting that March had gently patted her on the shoulder.

"Alice."

She turned from her friend to Hatter, her eyes fixed on his hand offered to her. Flustered, she placed her hand in his as he led them back down the aisle. Already life was moving about on the streets. She ignored the small smiles sent her way by strangers by ducking her head as the two moved toward the carriage. Hatter first helped her in before assisting Jane. He climbed in to sit in the bench opposite them.

Alice finally found her voice, remarking on something trivial.

"Where is Mr. March?"

Hatter was a little surprised that she had spoke.

"He is running to my shops to make sure that the employees remembered not to open this morning," he said, trying to sound as if they had not been married only moments before. It was almost as if she had come into the shop for a cup of tea and they had remarked on something stupid like when the next shipment of mint leaves was coming in.

"He'll be joining us for dinner later. As we did not have a party I wanted to mark the day for you in some way." He seemed a little flustered, and quickly glanced out the window. He thought that she would have resigned herself to the marriage by now. Weeks away from him should have made her used to the idea. But instead she seemed as cold as when he had first told her.

He noted that her maid was looking out the window and pretending not to listen, but he could tell that she was secretly trying to pay attention by the glances she would throw to Alice. Alice in insisted on keeping this woman in her service although Hatter hadn't the slightest idea why. They had Mrs. Merryweather for the household chores and the other servants. If she had wanted a lady's maid he would have given the job to one of the other maids. But for whatever reason this woman has been insisted upon, and he hadn't the heart to deny her.

No one said anything else while the carriage pulled up to Hatter's home. He exited the carriage before helping both women down. He knew that the staff would be waiting in the entrance hall, as he had instructed. The best thing for both himself and Alice would be a quick and easy transition for her into her new life. Meeting the people that she would see everyday would hopefully help her to ease into the daily routine.

His valet opened the door once the three approached it before returning to his place in the line of staff. The five members of the staff stood a bit straighter as Hatter gently led Alice to stand before them.

"Alice, this is your household staff. You already met Mrs. Merryweather, remember?" he asked, looking over at the older woman who already had tears gathering in her eyes.

"It is a pleasure to see you again, Mrs. Hatter," she said, not seeing Alice stiffen slightly at the name through her tears.

Hatter went down the line of the servants, explaining to her who each was. The valet who opened the door for them was Mr. Bill Lizard while the cook and maid were introduced as and Miss. Amelia James respectfully. The last man to be introduced was Mrs. Grey's husband, who was Hatter's driver and took care of the stable located in the back of the property. Alice was pleased to find out that her gelding had been moved into the stable already.

Jane was ushered up the stairs by Amelia to be shown to the room the two girls would share. Amelia seemed pleasant enough, and Alice was glad that at least Jane would be fine. She had known the woman since she had been ten and was not about to let go of her. Alice guessed her age to be around forty or fifty, but she didn't look a day over twenty.

"I'll show you upstairs, if you like."

Alice barely noticed that Hatter had been speaking to her. The staff had dispersed, most likely to return to whatever they had been doing before. Alice wasn't sure how to act around him. She wasn't sure if things would go back to normal, as they had when they had been friends. If nothing physical came between them, she assumed things would be that way. But if she treated him as a wife treated a husband she knew things wouldn't be as easy just yet.

She did want to see what the rest of the house looked liked, even if she still was upset with him. Wordlessly she accepted his hand as she pulled her toward the nearest door. "You've already seen the sitting room," he said, not bothering to show her that room again. They had fought the last time they had both been in there, and he didn't want to start a shouting match now. He showed her the rest of the first floor before leading her upstairs.

"The second floor is our bedroom, the study and two other bedrooms. Upstairs is where the staff sleeps. I had Amelia install Jane with her since her room is the closest to the stairs if you ever need her." The tour ended at their bedroom door, which caused the two to become awkward. He fumbled for the recently shined pocket watch clipped to his vest before looking back at her. "It is almost noon, and March should be here soon. Would you like to change into something else? It looks...cumbersome."

If she had to drag this train around for any longer she thought she would just rip it off. She kept her eyes on the door before reluctantly looking back at him. "Thank you," she said, finally allowing a small smile. He seemed to be visibly relieved before opening the door for her. "Would you like me to send down Miss..."

"Miss. Rivers?" she asked, giving him Jane's last name. "Yes, that would be nice. Thank you." He closed the door gently behind her. Turning to take in the room her eyes first fell on the pile of fur resting in a basket in the corner.

"Dinah!"

She ran over to the sleeping cat before grasping her in her arms. The cat seemed unfazed at their reunion and instead buried herself into the crook of Alice's arm. Alice had, for a fleeting moment, been afraid that Hatter would not allow her to bring her cat. She recalled a conversation they had years ago when he had explained to her that he didn't like cats, as they looked at him funny. But apparently he was going to put up with that.

Keeping the cat in her arms she walked around the room. A four poster bed was pushed to the back wall with a window overlooking the street on each side. Two chests of drawers were on the other wall, one containing her clothing. A vanity table had been installed and already the few photographs she had were placed on it. Placing herself on the stool as she waited for Jane.


	7. Chapter 7

AN: Another update! They really aren't on any type of schedule, just whenever I have the inspiration or time to post them. But thanks for sticking with me. I have been skirting around the idea of keeping this a T story, as I have never written a M before. Hopefully I can accomplish that tastefully. But you don't have to worry about a possible rating change this chapter.

If you want to read another AlicexHatter story of mine while waiting for this one to be updated, check out "Mad Love". Thanks!

Disclaimer: Lewis Carroll owns "_Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"_ and "_Beyond the Looking Glass_". Syfy owns "Alice".

Alice stood awkwardly in the doorway to the dining room, Jane having gone to the kitchen for dinner with the rest of the staff. Her empire waisted gown was one of her newest, as it had been sewn a week or so before her wedding. The soft pink colored fabric felt nice against her skin after having been restrained in her wedding gown moments before. The two men already seated at the table rose as they noticed her. March gave her a quick smile before plopping back into his chair. Hatter gave him a disapproving look before helping her into her chair.

"March has just been telling me how...happy he is to be given a nicer position at the shop. Right March?"

The man in question was eying the food that was being brought in, and was half listening to what Hatter was asking him. "Great. Just great," he responded although it was clear that he had no idea what his friend was talking about. Hatter gave him a well aimed kick to his ankle under the table, causing the other man to jump in his chair. "Give a man a break, will ya? I haven't eaten all morning, since you just insisted to be married at first light." He rolled his eyes before turning his attention to Alice, who had been quiet during the confrontation. "But congratulations," he said, lifting his wine glass to her. He gave her a half smile before digging into the sliced chicken on his plate.

Alice found herself glancing at her own plate, unable to stomach the idea of the chicken and potatoes, no matter how wonderful they must have tasted. Instead she casually sipped from her wine glass while moving around her food every now and then. At least it looked like she had touched it. She just couldn't concentrate on her food with her new husband across from her. She couldn't look at him. He wasn't Mr. Hatter anymore; he was her husband. If he noticed that she barely ate, he didn't call her out on it.

She listened as politely as she could to both Hatter and March talk, although she would have much rather stayed in her bedroom the entire time. She wasn't feeling up to being the mistress of the household and entertaining her guest. It was going to take her a bit of time to adjust to this new job. She knew that she would have to meet with Mrs. Merryweather each morning to go over that day's assignments. Then she would have to speak with Mrs. Grey about the meals to be made that day. Hatter had gotten by without socializing much as he had been a bachelor. But now that he was married, his wife was expected to involve them in social activities of the town's merchant class. Jane had briefed her on all of this weeks before her wedding to help her learn what was to be expected of her. She numbly noted that her current job would have been magnified had she been queen instead of the wife of a merchant.

Thinking about Jack wasn't what she needed right now. She twisted the cloth napkin in her lap tightly, momentarily catching it on her ring. She looked down at it before adjusting her napkin. She couldn't go on moping. Papa wouldn't mope.

Feeling a bit of bravery running through her she dared to look up from her lap, catching the eye of her husband to her surprise. She refused to look back down into her lap, and instead waited for him to break eye contact. March chattered on, not even noticing the silent stare down between husband and wife. Finally, with a playful smirk, Hatter broke eye contact. He jumped back into talking with March, feeling a little pleased with himself. He knew that he hadn't chosen a shrinking flower for a wife. Alice would come around to this, and from what he had seen, she had already shown him that she wouldn't take this by allowing him to walk over her.

Nearly twenty-minutes later the plates were taken from the room and the three moved onto the sitting room. She found her attention focused on the very arm chair she had been sitting in when he had told her of their engagement. Her husband must have noticed, for suddenly he was speaking to her. "Why don't you find Mrs. Merryweather, Alice? I'm sure she would love to show you around." He had chosen wisely in involving Mrs. Merryweather instead of himself, as she was not too keen on being alone with him at the moment. Maybe after a few decades she could get over it...

The woman hurried her from the room, amazing Alice by the speed that she had entered. She must have been waiting behind the sitting room door, but Alice was too shy to call her out on it. "You've already seen the parlor and dining room now, haven't you dear," the woman asked as she steered Alice down the hall. The young wife stumbled over herself to keep up with the hustling woman.

"The kitchens are toward the left, but I'd rather you not go in there just yet. is still is cleaning up the remnants of the chicken Mr. Lizard purchased today." Alice knew that she would have to go in eventually; she had been taught that a society wife would personally go over the week's menu with her family's cook. There were so many things to manage she wasn't sure if she was ever going to be able to wrap her head around them all.

She followed Mrs. Merryweather up the stairs to the second floor. "There are two spare bedrooms on the opposite side of yours," she explained as they walked past. She propped open one of the doors to give Alice a peak at the bedroom and Alice didn't bother to remind the woman that Hatter had already shown here these rooms. The maid seemed too into her impromptu job. The room was furnished and, although it was clean, it gave her the sense that no one had slept there for quite a while. She almost thought that she had caught the maid looking wistfully at her and the room but didn't have the chance to comment on it as she was rushed into the next hall. "Mr. Hatter's study is to the right," she said while opening the door. "He usually keeps to himself here at night but with you here, my dear, we might actually see him show his face."

The maid sighed as the two started the next staircase. "It gets so lonely here, my dear. So quiet. But I suspect in a few years it won't be; you look in good health. Babes will be no problem for you." Alice nearly tripped on the next step in her surprise at the woman's brashness, now understanding why Mrs. Merryweather had given her that strange look in the spare bedroom. 'She wants these rooms to be filled' she thought as she half-listened to the old woman gesture towards the servants' bedrooms.

"That is about it, I suppose," the elder woman said, her breathing a little heavier than the start of the tour. She leaned against the stair railing as she waited for Alice on the second floor landing. The house seemed eerily quiet now that the maid had stopped talking. She looked at Alice sympathetically for a moment. "I imagine that you could stay up here for the rest of the afternoon, if you wish. Mr. Hatter will probably still be talking with Mr. March. Smoking their cigars more like it. If I catch Mr. March dumping his cigar ashes off onto the side table one more time..." For a moment Alice was reminded of her first impression of the housekeeper, when she had come to confront Hatter about her father's will. As nice as she was, she guessed that Mrs. Merryweather ruled the household with a firm hand, which in this case extended to March.

"How about I send you up a cup of tea, dear. Strawberry, right?"

Without waiting for a response Mrs. Merryweather bustled off down the stairs toward the kitchen. Not wanting to stand in the hall looking like a fool in her own house, Alice slipped into her bedroom. Dinah still was curled up in her basket enjoying the quiet atmosphere of the room. She barely bothered to pick up her head when she noticed Alice. Ignoring being jilted by her own cat, Alice began to inspect the bedroom more closely than she had before. It seemed a bit unsettling to see that her things had been placed among Hatter's. The lace square that she had worked on the year before rested carefully on one of the nightstands where a vase on flowers was resting on it. Her knitting needles, which she thought that she might have touched only once in her life, were placed in a basket with her embroidery threads and wool beside her chest of drawers. It almost looked as if she lived here already. Well, didn't she?

She still felt as if she was a guest here and she supposed that she would feel this way for quite some time. Her attention strayed toward the bed at the other end of the room. Carefully sitting on the edge she ran her fingertips over the coverlet. Hesitantly she placed her head on the pillow nearest to her. Her husband's scent lingered on the sheets, and she found that she enjoyed that smell that was uniquely him: tea leaves with a hint of cigar smoke.

Alice nearly jumped at the knock on her bedroom door before Jane came in holding a tea tray. "Mrs. Merryweather asked if I would bring this to you," she said, closing the door softly behind herself. She set the tray down on a side table before carefully pouring the steaming liquid into the single cup placed on the tray. After preparing Alice's cup she gently handed it to the new wife. Jane watched her for a moment, as if expecting her to explode or start ranting, but instead found that Alice simply sipped from her cup in silence. She acting like she had been in the past few weeks again: sullen, quiet. But instead of trying to forget her fate she was now trying to accept it.

"It won't be terrible," she rambled on as Alice continued to drink from the cup. "You and Mr. Hatter are friends; not many marriages are built on friendships to start."

"And he is handsome, Miss. At least he doesn't look like Mr. Kensington." At the mention of the grumpy, elderly man with no teeth that worked as a manservant in Jack's court, Alice burst into laughter. She found laughing felt liberating and she realized that she had never actually considered it that way before. So many emotions could be expressed in a simple laugh: amusement, happiness, joy. Or in other ways if you wished to pity someone, to mock them, to darkly laugh at yourself and your situation. Abruptly she stopped, surprising her maid. Still, she didn't retreat into her gloomy behavior from earlier even if, Jane noted, she was not yet back to her exuberant attitude.

"Tell me about your situation upstairs, Jane," Alice requested, glad for the conversation to focus on someone else.

Alice spent the rest of the afternoon up until supper listening to Jane. She approved of the young girl sharing one of the upstairs rooms with her, even if she was a little quiet. Jane was determined already not to get in Mrs. Merryweather's way. She didn't want to be the cause of the elder maid's frustration. Another knock at the door exposed Miss. Amelia James, Jane's new roommate, with the news that supper was to be served. Jane followed her mistress down the stairs to the dining room before dutifully standing to the side in the room. Alice frowned as she realized only one place was set at the table.

"Is Mr. Hatter not joining me?" she asked, refraining from using the word "husband". Amelia shook her head, blushing slightly in her shyness. "He is busy in his study, mistress, but apologizes." She disappeared into the hall for a moment before returning with a simple meal of mixed greens and mutton.

"You can go on to supper, Jane," she suggested after realizing that poor Jane was going to have to stand in silence the entire meal. If her husband had been there than protocol would have kept Jane in attendance. But Alice didn't have the heart to keep her waiting for her. Jane curtsied before leaving the room. Alice watched Amelia carefully as the young woman poured white wine into her empty glass. "Miss. James, correct," she asked, already knowing fully well that she was correct in the girl's name. But at least it was a start for the conversation.

Amelia nodded quickly before averting her eyes as she stepped back to the far wall. Seeing that the girl was too shy to help the conversation along, Alice attempted to prod information from her. "You have been working here long?" she asked after a sip of wine. The girl glanced up from the floor, a little surprised that her new mistress was bothering to talk to her. Mr. Hatter talked to her from time to time, but Amelia had supposed that his new wife wouldn't even both. After all, she was from King Jack's court. She thought that she would have thought herself too high.

Pleased to be spoken to she sounded a bit more confident.

"For about four years now, Madam. It will be nice having another person here; it gets lonely at times."

She had been the second staff member to tell her that the house was very quiet at times. She wondered if Hatter was always like that at home. She had never seen him act that way on their walks, or when she was at the shop.

The meal passed in small chatter until Alice had finished. Amelia curtsied carefully before exiting with her plate and suggesting that she might like to retire to her bedroom to prepare. Alice had almost asked her for what, before she realized. Her wedding night.

She had almost managed to forget about it. Turning red she hurried from the room to seek refuge in her bedroom. Jane was already there waiting for her, surprised by the flushed look on her mistresses' face. It took the maid a moment to understand.

"I'll draw a bath," was all she said, pushing her charge into the adjacent bathing room.

While Jane fretted over Alice, Hatter had locked himself up in his study. The list before him contained an inventory of the latest shipment of tea, but he found that he couldn't concentrate on it. His thoughts kept drifting to the young woman who was, at that moment, being fussed over. He was starting to regret his tactics. Maybe if he had taken time out to actually court her instead of just asking her father for her hand, she might be a bit more eager to be his wife. But if he had waited, the king might have been able to get the Suits on his side, and Alice might have been his wife instead of Hatter's. Anyway, there was too much doubt in his mind that Jack would have been able to convince the Suits. He would need a marriage to an actual noble who would help back his claim to the throne.

He loved his wife, really he did, but he wasn't sure how to best get around this speed bump of intimacy. Over time she would get used to the building, to him, to the staff. But this wasn't something that she would just get used to in a week. While he tore himself away from his unfinished work Alice was being ushered into her nightdress. The faint smell of roses lingered at the base of her neck where Jane had sprayed a bit of perfume. The white flannel was soothing against her skin after her maid insisted upon Alice scrubbing herself nearly raw. She almost felt as if she was five again when Jane would check if she had washed behind her ears or not.

Jane paused in brushing Alice's hair as the door opened, revealing Hatter. He nodded in greeting to the two before rummaging around in his chest of drawers for a moment. He exited to the bathing room leaving the two women in silence. Jane set down the hairbrush on Alice's vanity table before gently pulling her into a standing position. Without a word she pulled Alice into her arms, held her tightly for a moment, before releasing her. With an encouraging smile Jane left the room. Alice felt as if her heart was going to jump out of her chest with anxiety now that her ally was gone from the room. She heard stirring in the other room before Hatter returned once more.

He was dressed in his nightclothes which she had just realized he had been searching for earlier in his drawers. He stood before her, a look of determination in his eyes. His hand flitted through the back of her hair causing goosebumps to bloom on her scalp. Her eyes were locked onto his as he moved down to kiss her. It wasn't distasteful, but it wasn't as if Jack was kissing her. But maybe because she had never been standing in her nightdress with Jack and her martial bed in front of her. The kiss between the two wasn't as chaste as the one in the chapel, and she detected some type of desire or need behind it. To her surprise, she returned it. But abruptly he broke away from her, the look of desire fading in his eyes.

"Go to sleep, Alice," was all he said, smiling slightly before leaning over to turn down the gas lamp. She frowned in the dark, glad that he couldn't see that she was disappointed. She had worried for nothing. Climbing into bed beside him she pulled the blankets up to her chin. Soon afterward she noticed that her husband's breathing had gone even, hinting that he had fallen asleep. Alice stayed up for a little while longer, thinking over her sham of a marriage.


	8. Chapter 8

AN: The time between all my updates is weird, and I'm sorry if I am disappointing anyone. I don't have a set schedule, since it is really when I feel inspired or have time. But I do have a sequel in mind. :P

Disclaimer: Lewis Carroll owns "_Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"_ and "_Beyond the Looking Glass_". Syfy owns "Alice".

She woke alone that morning, as she had for the past month. As always Jane had entered her room far before Alice had woken and drew back the drapes to allow the early morning light to filter in. What followed was normally a cheery wake up call by her maid in an attempt to rouse her from sleep. She smiled slightly despite herself; she supposed some things never did change. Of course, this room wasn't the chambers she was used to at the palace.

Nor was her father waiting in the next room over. She raised herself wearily onto her elbows and watched as Jane bustled around the room to prepare her for that morning's dressing. Her friend gave her a discreet look, which Alice had begun to pick up on after a few mornings of her new married life, in order to assess her former charge. Alice knew without having to inquire about her friend's stares to know what the maid was looking for: the telltale signs. It would have been quite obvious if Alice had indeed became a wife the night before by the rumpled blankets, bloodstained sheets, and general mussed appearance. But Alice looked just as put together as she had when Jane had helped her prepare for bed the night before.

Since the night of the wedding Hatter had made no more physical attempts toward her. He treated her with as much courtesy as ever although he seemed to be more distant in his interactions with her. It felt almost as if they were total strangers and not close friends as they truly were. But she guessed that marriage and friendship were two separate things. Alice, for her part, was mostly thankful that nothing had yet to happen. She had heard enough from the giggling maids of the palace what happened in private between men and women, in addition to the explanation given to her years earlier by Jane.

She had no desire to feel the pain that was described to her or to be in such a vulnerable state of undress. Husband or not, she wasn't comfortable with being stark naked in front of anyone.

"Come along Alice. You'd best get up now so that you aren't late to breakfast. All we need is that woman to be on our backs again."

The ex-governess rolled her eyes as she withdrew a peach colored silk gown from the wardrobe. Although Alice had not lived in Hatter's home for more than a month already Mrs. Merryweather and Jane were starting to butt heads. She supposed that it was because Mrs. Merryweather was used to running things her way without any input from the other maids. But Jane wasn't exactly the type to be told what to do, especially after being in charge of Alice's household for so long.

Alice bit back a laugh before sliding out of the soft bed. The two chattered about Alice's plans for the day as Alice was dressed and prepared. She had received a calling card from a Mrs. Ashley that lived a few houses down from her. The other woman was holding an afternoon tea and had requested that Alice attend. She was a bit hesitant, as she was unsure of the woman's intentions, but accepted anyway. Even if the woman was just being nosy she couldn't go and turn down invitations right away; she would be written off as a recluse.

As she had only left the house a handful of times since her marriage, the last thing she wanted was to have no excuse for going beyond the house.

After descending the stairs she stepped into the dining room, nodding a 'good morning' to her husband seated on the other side of the table. She gave Mr. Lizard a small smile as he helped her into her chair before reaching forward for her glass of water. She sipped at it carefully, stealing a look at Hatter over the rim. He was diligently reading that morning's paper, like always. She almost found it comical how predictable her life had become.

After a nearly silent breakfast she knew that he would excuse himself to go off to the shop, leaving her to overlook the work of the house for the rest of the day. He would arrive home around five in the afternoon and join her for dinner not long after. What followed was normally awkward conversation for about a half an hour or so in the parlor before he excused himself to finish up some last minute work before bed. She would then prepare for bed and fall asleep long before he returned to their bedroom, and leave her long before she woke the next morning.

This cycle was starting to infuriate her.

What was the point of their life together if he refused to interact with her at all? Their physical interaction was the same as before their marriage, with the exception being that now she slept beside him each night. She felt that sometimes she wished to stamp her foot like an errant child and pitch one of the china plates across the room to get his attention. It wasn't that she was looking for intimate physical contact; in truth she was avoiding that aspect of their 'marriage'. She just could not, however, stand aside and be treated as a doll or some type of curio for him to display.

She watched as he carefully folded the paper before handing it off to Mr. Lizard who was waiting along the wall. He stood, giving a nod to Alice before moving from the room. She felt her hand coil around the linen napkin in her lap in frustration although she continued with her meal as if nothing had happened.

She wasn't sure how long she could go on like this.

Nearly three hours later she found herself standing before the polished front door of one Mrs. Ashley. One gloved hand was raised to reach for the brass door knocker, paused in midair as if unable to move. She tried to school her features into those resembling anything but nervousness but was afraid to see the results. She had never really had a close female friend beside Jane before and was a little embarrassed about the way that she might come off to this women. She wasn't a tomboy either, but years of growing up with a boy hadn't exactly taught her the proper way to carry on the meaningless chatter that she knew tea socials usually required.

Her left hand tightened measurably around the maroon sachet in her palm until she realized that anymore pressure might cause the bag to pop. Hastily she glanced over her shoulder to see if anyone else on the street had taken notice of her odd behavior. It seemed that everyone else out and about were too involved in their own concerns to observe the behavior of the new wife.

Finally after clearing her throat Alice brought her hand forward to use the knocker. She just had to act like an adult was all. After all, she was one now, wasn't she?

Nearly five seconds later a stately looking man opened the door for her, bowing at the waist.

"Mrs. Hatter."

She almost didn't respond for a moment, as if she had forgotten that that was her name.

"Mrs. Ashley and her guests are waiting in the parlor. If you would please give me your wrap..."

She reluctantly parted with her shawl, thinking it something of a shield against the eyes of the unknown women chattering in the next room over. The butler draped it over his arm with ease before starting toward the parlor. Alice numbly followed after him, still clutching the small sachet. The chattering of the women died down as the man cleared his throat.

"Mrs. Hatter to see you, madam."

A middle aged women stood up from the floral printed sofa directly across from the butler and Alice. She smiled warmly and began to move toward her at a rather slow pace. The quick glimpse she had gotten of the woman's rounded stomach beneath her empire waist was enough to alert Alice that she was pregnant.

"Welcome my dear," the woman greeted, taking one of Alice's hands into both of hers. "Welcome to our little group."

She turned to face the other women who were curiously ogling the newcomer. Alice felt her face grow warm from the attention, and she struggled to sound articulate and not like a stammering child.

"Thank you, Mrs. Ashley."

It was only then that she realized she was nearly squeezing the satchel in her hand into powder. "This is for you, from my husband's personal store," she held out the small bag of tea leaves carefully. The woman gratefully accepted them before handing off the bag to the waiting butler.

"Thank you, Mrs. Hatter. It was quite nice of you to think of me. Please, send on my thanks to your dear husband."

Alice forced a smile onto her face as she was ushered farther into the room. Mrs. Ashley quickly began to gesture to the other ladies. Soon she was introduced to the rest of the group: the elderly Mrs. Jameson, a bored looking , and a woman named Mrs. Pappet that didn't seem to be much older than Alice.

Mrs. Pappet moved over on the sofa that she was currently sitting on, gently patting the free spot for Alice. A slight twinkle rested in the young woman's eye, as if she knew exactly how nerve wracking this meeting was for Alice. Gratefully the new wife sat beside the woman before settling her hands into her lap.

"Welcome to our little circle, dear," Mrs. Jameson piped up. The old woman squinted slightly to get a better glimpse of Alice. She nervously smiled, unsure of what to do under the woman's scrutiny.

"Thank you, very much," she managed to answer before accepting a cup of tea from Mrs. Ashley. She sipped at it slowly, trying to ignore the bitter taste. Mrs. Ashley returned to her earlier seat, her attention clearly on Alice now. "How are you fitting into things dear?" she asked politely, absentmindedly resting a hand on her now pronounced stomach.

Alice thought over her answer for a second.

"It's been...difficult," she said, summing up her few weeks of married life. The women gave her understanding nods. "It will take some getting used to, I suppose."

Mrs. Ashley leaned back into the sofa. "I remember quite well," she said, sighing as if a little wistful. "Although things were simpler then. Thank goodness for the governess, or I'd never have a moment free." A few chuckles arose from two of the older women, while Mrs. Pappet stayed silent beside Alice. Alice guessed that this young woman hadn't had children yet either.

"But it gets easier. You'll get into the swing of things in no time." She waved her hand in the air dismissively. "But tell us, dear, tell us about yourself."

Alice glanced around the group, taking in the expectant eyes. "Well," she began, "I've lived in the palace for my entire life. My father had been one of the king's scientists." Again she was faced with understanding looking nods. She almost thought it was a little comical how attentive they were to her story, but she supposed as bored housewives they had nothing better to do than sit around with each other all day. With a sinking feeling in her stomach she realized that was how she would appear soon.

Mrs. Ashley leaned over to pat her gently on the knee. "I remembering hearing about that; I'm quite sorry for you dear." The other women followed up with soft condolences, which Alice wasn't quite sure were sincere or not.

Her mental question was answered as Mrs. Wright began to speak. "The palace, you said?" she asked, clearly trying to hide her interest yet failing. "That must have been exciting. Why, I've only been there once, and that was for the King's coronation ball." The woman sat up a bit higher, as placing herself above everyone else in the room. "Mr. Wright and myself were invited to the ball, you see. My family has always supported the King."

Alice bit her tongue, wishing to remind the woman that she too had been invited, and had actually danced with the king. She couldn't even remember seeing Mrs. Wright there. But she didn't want to make a bad impression on her first meeting with these women; Mrs. Ashley had been nice enough to invite her to begin with.

Mrs. Wright watched her carefully as she spoke. "There were rumors that he was attached to you, Mrs. Hatter." She let the words hang in the air for Alice to answer to. Alice took her time sipping at her tea, all the while trying to ignore the small smirk on Mrs. Wright's face. "We were good friends. I grew up with him, you see," she said carefully, proud of herself that she had kept a neutral tone.

Mrs. Wright shrugged, the smirk still in place despite not hearing the answer that she had wished for. "That's for the best then; he is getting engaged after all." Alice felt the blood rush from her face as she comprehended the news. Had she been drinking her tea at the moment, she felt that she might have had to spit it out.

Mrs. Pappet was the first to jump to her defense.

"Really, Madeleine," she chided, staring down the other woman. "Starting rumors about the King isn't the most respectful thing for some of your station to be doing, is it?" No one had been able to ignore the sarcasm laced in 'your station', which caused Mrs. Wright's smirk to fall into a frown. Before she was able to retaliate Mrs. Ashley raised her hand up.

"Ladies! Really! Is this the way to conduct ourselves in front of our newest friend?"

Mrs. Ashley's voice held something of a mother admonishing her children. Whatever the tone, it worked on the two irate women. Mrs. Wright stared sulkily into her tea while Mrs. Pappet stared ahead at the wall, a little smug looking. She turned her gaze slightly to catch Alice's eye, giving her a small smile of encouragement. Alice felt the same smile mirror onto her face for a moment.

At least someone was looking out for her.

Nearly two hours later she returned home from the afternoon tea. She found Mrs. Ashley to be very matronly, which she found rather comforting. Mrs. Jameson, although a bit hard of hearing, was very sweet. Although, the woman did have the tendency to reference an event that she had thought happened a week ago, while in reality it had happened forty years ago. Mrs. Wright had attempted to rise her into conversation about the King once or twice more although Alice had refused to comment on him. Instead either Mrs. Ashley or Mrs. Pappet changed the subject to something much lighter. Mrs. Pappet had stood out the most to her. As Alice had grown up along with Jack for her childhood, she hadn't had many female friends except for Jane. To have someone around her age to talk to was something she wanted to take advantage of.

But the rumor of Jack becoming engaged was something that she couldn't ignore. Throughout the entire afternoon with the ladies it had been at the back of her mind, simmering upon her subconscious. She was still unable to stop thinking about the possibility of Jack becoming engaged. She knew that it shouldn't bother her; she was married, after all. But still, the thought of him calling another woman 'wife' caused her chest to constrict.

If anyone would know the truth, it would be Jane. Her ex-governess still had friends in the palace and would know the current state of affairs. Alice found the woman working at embroidering in Alice's room, by the window overlooking the street. She smiled warmly at her former-charge before going back to her work. "Did you have fun?" she asked as she continued with her pattern. Alice came to stop before the other window, looking out onto the street below.

"It was...interesting."

Jane laughed. "You'll make friends soon enough. After all, you're the newest thing this neighborhood has; everyone will want to see you."

"I heard that Jack is engaged," Alice blurted out, turning from the window to face the other woman. She had planned on easing into her question but she had found herself unable to wait. She waited in silence as Jane finished her current stitch.

The woman took her time in placing down her materials before looking up at Alice. "I've heard talk from my friends in the palace, but I thought nothing of it until about a week ago." She stood up, coming to stand beside Alice and placing a hand on her shoulder. "I heard that he is going to announce it within the next month." Alice, for a moment, didn't react. What could she do? She couldn't exactly go up to her friend and yell at him for betraying her. Nor could she expect him to wait around forever while she went on with her new life.

She remained silent, causing an alarm to run through Jane.

"Alice...are you alright?" she asked, turning the young woman's face to observe her. Alice's vision focused in on Jane's look of concern. With a shaky smile she patted the governess' hand. "I'm fine," she asserted, although her tone wasn't fooling either of them. She cleared her throat. "I'm having lunch with Mrs. Pappet on Wednesday; help me pick out a suitable outfit, will you please?" She broke away from Jane, going over to her wardrobe as her mind focused on the man in the palace.

The last straw had been that he hadn't been at dinner.

Alice had gone down to the dining room long after her husband was due to come home, only to be told by a nervous looking Mr. Lizard that her husband was staying later at the shop. She had been rehearsing a speech in her mind all that afternoon to say to her husband on the state of their 'marriage', and had been completely thrown off now that he wasn't there. She ate alone silently, inwardly fuming at this prime example for her argument. She wouldn't sit around like a toy any longer.

Jane didn't comment on her mood as she helped her dress for bed. She left Alice to sit alone in her bed waiting for her husband to finally return. She had heard Mr. Lizard open the door for him as she had been dressing, so she knew that he was somewhere in the area. She heard the grandfather clock in the front hall chime eleven when the door to her bedroom finally opened. Hatter checked at seeing her still awake.

"Alice...it's late. Go to sleep," he murmured, closing the door to the hall behind himself. He moved to collect his bedclothes from his wardrobe, completely ignoring the astonished look on his wife's face. Alice felt her face grow red with rage. How dare he just come in late and chide her as if she was a child? She kicked the blankets off and slid off the edge of the bed. Her pale hand grabbed onto the sleeve of his shirt, stopping him from entering the bathing room. He turned to address her, but she cut him off.

"What is wrong with you?"

The air between them hung heavy with silence for a heartbeat. Then Hatter moved to pat the hand currently glued to his sleeve. "We'll talk about this later Alice. Just go to sleep," he insisted, gently prying her hand away. To his surprise, she used her free hand to bat his away.

"No! Answer my question now. It's the least you can do after ignoring me for an entire month." She fought to keep her volume under control. She didn't need the entire staff waking up because she was having a spat with her husband. Although now that she felt all of the annoyance and hurt of the past month surfacing she was finding it harder to remain quiet.

"You insist on marrying me...insist on taking me away from the life I could have had. And then you refuse to even speak to me! Don't look at me like that!." He had given her a questioning look, as if unsure of what she was referencing. But she wasn't about to let him play stupid.

"You claim that I'm your wife, yet you treat me nothing like it. You claim I'm your friend, but our friendship is nothing like it used to be. We used to be able to talk about anything, do you remember? Now you barely give me the time of day." She let go of his sleeve, taking a step closer.

"I'm not something to keep on display, Hatter. I refuse to be! Now what do you want from me? I can't go on guessing."

She found herself a few inches away from him, her chest heaving as she struggled to get her breathing back to normal from her impromptu speech.

"Jack is going to get engaged, did you know that?" She forced breath into her lungs, even as if her chest constricted with her pain. "He is going to have the life that I was supposed to have with him. And where am I? I'm with a man who insisted on changing my life, and refuses to even talk to me!"

She had been expecting an angry response from him. Maybe a few yells. She had even for a moment thought that he would hit her.

What she didn't expect was him to kiss her. And she hadn't even thought of kissing him back, yet she found her lips firmly pressed to his in response. His hands starting on the buttons of her nightdress had been a bit of a surprise, but not as much as her refusal to stop him.


End file.
